Rahul Mamkootathil makes first public appearance after suspension

Thiruvananthapuram: Rahul Mamkootathil, the suspended Congress MLA from Palakkad, walked into the Kerala Assembly on Monday, September 15, his first public appearance since being suspended from the party following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

The legislator had been staying away from public life at his home in Adoor after the allegations and the subsequent party action.

The Congress suspended him in August, but he retained his Assembly seat.

Mamkootathil, who enjoys support from a significant section of the Congress, arrived a few minutes after the House began, taking a seat on the backbench of the opposition block.

He was accompanied by Youth Congress district president Nemom Shajeer and a few friends.

There was little visible reaction from other members when he entered, even as the House was paying tribute to former chief minister V S Achuthanandan and two others.

His appearance followed days of speculation over whether he would attend the session, as the opposition leader V D Satheesan had objected to his presence.

Mamkootathil recently quit as Youth Congress state president after Malayalam actress Rini Ann George accused "a young leader" of a well-known political party of misbehaviour and subsequent protests by BJP and DYFI, the youth wing of the CPI(M).

Subsequently, some women and a transgender person accused him of similar charges.

He was also suspended from the Congress party over the allegations.