Anticipatory bail granted to rape-accused actor-producer Vijay Babu
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KOCHI: Rape-accused actor-producer Vijay Babu was granted anticipatory bail by the Kerala High Court on the case filed against him by an actress.
Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas while granting bail, asked the accused to appear before the investigating officer for interrogation on June 27 at 9 am. He added that interrogations can be conducted for seven days from June 27 till July 3 from 9 am to 6 pm, if necessary, every day.
The petitioner will be considered to be in custody for that period to simplify the requirements of the investigation. If the investigating officer aims to bring the petitioner under arrest, he should be released on bail with a bond of Rs 5 lakh. The petitioner must appear when requested by the investigating officer and must not contact or interact with the victim or witnesses.
"The petitioner shall not indulge in any form of attack through social media against the victim or her family. He shall not leave Kerala without prior permission of the court," held the court.
Vijay Babu alleged In the petition that the actor, who had lodged the complaint against him, would call him at odd times and would constantly send him messages to his phone. She regularly tried to keep in touch with him and now he realizes that she had intended to get more opportunities in the cinema industry. He added that all the messages, including WhatsApp messages and Instagram messages, photos and videos that were sent to him from the complainant's mobile number were kept safe by him. He was willing to produce the same in front of the investigating agency and give explanations on the same, the New Indian Express reported.
According to the petition, the actor was trying to blackmail the petitioner by filing a complaint alleging that he had forcibly sexually abused her.
he maintained that forceful sexual assault was not present. "The complainant is aged 25 years. Hence, she is capable of understanding things and she is fully aware of the family details of the petitioner," he said.
