SC breather for Madhur Bhandarkar

In a major relief for filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, the Supreme Court on Monday stayed criminal proceedings against him on the allegation of rape levelled by aspiring actress Preeti Jain.

The apex court also issued notices to the Maharashtra government and the actress on a petition by Bhandarkar for quashing the case against him. Jain had alleged that Bhandarkar had sex with her 16 times on the pretext of giving her role in his film and marrying her. However, she alleged that the filmmaker went back on his promises.

In July 2004, Jain created a sensation after she complained that the national award winning director had raped her on the pretext of giving her a lead role in his film. She alleged that Bhandarkar had sex with her from 1999-2004. In November last year, the Bombay High Court had granted bail to Bhandarkar on a bond of Rs30,000 and two sureties.