Bengaluru, Dec 9 (IANS) Tollywood actress Kolla Hema released an emotional video on Tuesday after the Karnataka High Court cleared her of all charges in the 2024 rave party case. In the video, she said that her mother had died, unable to bear the distress caused by the case.

“Carrying that pain in my heart, I want to share this good news. The High Court has dismissed the case,” she said as she broke down.

In her message, Hema said, “Hi all, I am your Hema. I stand before you with the grief of losing my mother. The Karnataka High Court has quashed my case. The verdict came on November 3. I was told not to share the news until the certified copy of the judgment was available.”

She said her mother suffered a stroke days after the verdict and did not recover.

“In the meantime, my mother suffered a stroke and passed away. She was my strength and source of courage. Whatever I am today is because of her. She could not cope with what happened to me. My mother could not bear the social media posts and the media trial carried out by news channels,” Hema said.

The actress added that she repeatedly pleaded with social media users and media outlets to stop spreading unverified allegations.

“I had already shared that my mother was unwell. Who gave social media users and media outlets the authority to troll me? From the beginning, I have been pleading with them not to broadcast false information. To cover up one false report, they kept spreading more incorrect news and stooped to lower levels. I repeatedly said that I had done nothing wrong and would come out clean. Today, I stand before you with a clean image. God is beside me,” she said.

She said the long legal ordeal cost her both peace and work. “I won the case but lost my mother forever. Will you bring my mother back? How am I supposed to cope? Do I have to struggle endlessly? I have come out clean with the blessings of my mother and God. For the past one and a half years, my life has been hell. I had not contacted any director or anyone from the film industry. You (the media) carried out propaganda and continued with it,” Hema said in the video.

In a major relief, the Karnataka High Court quashed the drug case registered against her in connection with the May 2024 Hebbagodi rave party. The single judge bench allowed her petition seeking dismissal of the case, noting the absence of standard testing methods and legally sustainable evidence. The bench headed by Justice Mohammad Nawaz passed the order.

Hema was among the 88 people detained after the Central Crime Branch raided a rave party at GR Farms on May 19, 2024. Police had alleged that MDMA pills and cocaine were used at the event and booked the group under the NDPS Act. She later underwent a medical test at a private hospital, but the High Court held that the report could not be considered reliable in the absence of standardised forensic parameters in the country.

The court pointed out several gaps in the process, including a lack of a national nodal drug testing laboratory, the absence of approved protocols for analysing blood and urine samples, and the unreliability of tests conducted without uniform scientific standards. Given these shortcomings, the bench ruled that the proceedings against the actress could not continue.

The CCB had filed a chargesheet against all 88 people arrested in the party. Hema then approached the High Court seeking its dismissal.

–IANS

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