The Maharashtra State Commission for Women on Tuesday took cognisance of sexual harassment charges levelled by actress and former Miss India Tanushree Dutta on critically-acclaimed actor Nana Patekar.


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According to news agency ANI, the Maharashtra State Commission for Women issued notices to Nana Patekar, film director Rakesh Sarang and choreographer Ganesh Acharya, among others, in connection with the case. They have been asked to submit their replies within 10 days.


The panel has also sought an update of investigation into the police complaint filed by Tanushree Dutta. It has also asked the actress to visit the commission's office to record her statement.


A police complaint was filed by Tanushree at Oshiwara police station on Saturday. Apart from Nana Patekar, she had named choreographer Ganesh Acharya in the police complaint.


Nana Patekar has outrightly denied the allegations against him. According to news agency PTI, a press conference, slated to be addressed by him, was also cancelled.


A message was sent to mediapersons by Nana’s son Malhar. It read, “Sorry to be messaging at this hour, just wanted to inform that there's no press conference tomorrow, please pass on the message to your colleagues in the media. Will let you know about the further proceedings soon, regards.”


The 67-year-old actor's lawyer has sent a legal notice to Tanushree Dutta for allegedly making false accusations against him in an incident that dates back to a decade. Dutta has said that Patekar had harassed her during the shooting of a film in 2008 and she had spoken out about the incident but nothing happened and she was even thrown out of the film.


Tanushree has claimed in recent interviews that Patekar harassed her sexually in 2008 on the sets of her film 'Horn OK Pleassss' and also demanded to do an intimate dance step with her. She also named choreographer Ganesh Acharya, director Rakesh Sarang and producer Sami Siddiqui as accomplices in the harassment she faced.