Kochi | Actor Shwetha Menon on Wednesday broke her silence on her resignation as president of the AMMA, saying she stepped down because she refused to be a "puppet to anyone" and chose self-respect over continuing in office.
Shwetha and the 17-member executive committee of Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) resigned on June 21 following dramatic scenes and heated exchanges during the organisation's annual general body meeting.
The resignations came amid ongoing differences within the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists over several issues that have surfaced in recent months.
In a Facebook post, Shwetha thanked those who supported her and said she wanted to address the public directly. She wrote, "The reason why I resigned is because I refused to be a puppet to anyone." She also alleged that even before the AMMA election, certain people were used to spread propaganda and make fabricated allegations against her.
Despite this, she said she won the election with the backing of most AMMA members and worked to the best of her ability.
According to the post, Shwetha claimed that certain vested interests prevented her team from investigating the alleged wrongdoings of some previous committee members.
She called for a detailed review of the accounts of the past two terms, including the tenure of her committee, and demanded a forensic audit to ensure transparency and accountability.
The actor further alleged that after her resignation, propaganda, fabricated allegations and attempts at character assassination were continuing through "certain newly imported characters." Addressing speculation about her political leanings, Shwetha wrote, "So let me make one thing very clear. I am neither a Sanghi nor a Commie," a reference to Sangh Parivar and Communist Parties.
She added that she had never attended functions organised by either the BJP-led Central Government or the previous LDF-led State Governments, despite receiving invitations.
Explaining her decision to resign, she said, "When I continued to face baseless character assassination and personal insults, I decided to resign from AMMA as a woman with principles. That decision was not out of weakness. It was out of self-respect." She ended the post by saying, "To be continued...Picture abhi baaki hai, mere dost."
