Singer Papon found himself in the eye of a storm this morning when a video of him kissing a minor on the sets of a reality TV show went viral. Needless to say, the video sent shock waves amongst fan communities and others who couldn’t believe their eyes.
Reportedly, the kids on the show were celebrating an early Holi in his van when the incident happened. In the Facebook live video that was being streamed by the crew, the singer can be seen grabbing the girl’s cheeks and planting a kiss on her. Papon tells the cameraman to stop recording after he is heard saying “Arey ye kya ho raha hai?”
Soon, it was followed by an FIR by an SC advocate who found the act inappropriate and condemnable!
#Delhi: Supreme Court advocate Runa Bhuyan files a complaint against singer Papon for 'inappropriately kissing a minor girl' who is a contestant on a reality TV show. pic.twitter.com/uqTT10YpiD
— ANI (@ANI) February 23, 2018
Not just that, the complaint was followed by a series of flak by people who accused Papon of sexually assaulting the child.
Yes, Partha Gogoi, Papon’s manager, defended the act saying it was not meant to hurt the sentiments of any individual and that it was not wrong in any manner but the bat-bricks didn’t stop.
So much so that, now, Papon himself has issued a statement and shared his side of the story on Twitter. Breaking silence about the kiss, he said,
“To show affection for an 11-year-old child who I have been mentoring for a while now is not an alien concept for me.
It was actually the faulty camera angles and an accidental move and not a sexual assault as (is) being reported.”
Not just that, he also pleaded that he is an affectionate being who also happens to be married and the accusations have marred his reputation.
“I have a loving wife of over 14 years and two young children. There is a little girl involved, whose identity is not masked in any way. Both our families are being destroyed forever, just by people jumping to conclusions.”
Read his entire statement here.
Innocent or damage control? Only time will tell. Stay tuned for more.