Tanushree Dutta had filed a complaint against Nana Patekar in October 2018 as she accused the actor of harassing and misbehaving with her on the sets of ‘Horn Ok Pleasss’. This created a huge stir and started the whole ‘Me Too’ movement on social media. Later in 2019, the police filed the final report before the magistrate court stating that probe did not find anything incriminating against any of the accused. The FIR was found to be false, the police further said in its report. In legal terms, such a report is called a ‘B-summary’.
Now, a Mumbai court has finally given its judgement on the matter. The court has refused to take cognisance of “MeToo” allegations against Nana. The reason given for this was that, Tanushree had filed the complaint, “beyond the period of limitation” and did not even explain the reason for the delay in complaint. The actress had filed the complaint in 2018 and had accused Nana of harassing her in 2008, with no specific reason in the delay for filing the complaint.
Thus, Judicial Magistrate First Class (Andheri) NV Bansal said that Dutta filed an FIR in 2018 over an incident that allegedly occurred on March 23, 2008. The magistrate said that Tanushree had filed an FIR in 2018 under the Indian Penal Code sections 354 and 509 over an incident that allegedly occurred on March 23, 2008. The magistrate added, “no reason before me to take cognisance after a long lapse of more than 7 years after the expiry of the period of limitation.”
The magistrate also said, “If such a huge delay is condoned without any sufficient cause, then it will be against the principle of equity and true spirit of the law. Thus this is not within limitation and the court is barred to take cognisance of the same.”
Thus, the magistrate disposed of the B Summary report, saying it “cannot be dealt with due to bar of taking cognisance”.
Neither Tanushree, nor Nana have reacted after this decision by the court.