Anu Malik to return as judge on Indian Idol season 11 despite sexual harassment allegations

Bollywood music director Anu Malik, accused of sexual harassment at the wake of the #MeToo movement in India, will reportedly return as a judge for the eleventh season of the music reality show Indian Idol, reports Times Now. Malik was accused by a fellow singer who termed him as a pedophile, further stating that he had asked her for a kiss when she was just 15 years old. Following the singer’s statement, there were several others who opened up about instances of harassment faced due to Malik. [caption id=“attachment_5398191” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Anu Malik. Image from Facebook[/caption] Amid the accusation, Malik, who was then judging Indian Idol season 10, was asked to step down . Later however, Sonu Nigam and lyricist Sameer Anjaan had vocally expressed their support towards Malik.

Ironically, Malik’s presence on the reality music competition has been constant and he has been part of the judges’ panel since season 1. When questioned about the sexual harassment allegations against him, Malik told Press Trust of India, “No comments. This is ridiculous. I don’t want to talk about it. Today anyone says anything.” An official confirmation of the news by the channel or showrunners is still awaited.