Malayalam actor and producer Vijay Babu was reportedly arrested on June 27 for allegedly sexually assaulting an actress.
According to reports, he was arrested on June 27th morning when he appeared before the Ernakulam South police station for questioning and was soon let out on bail by late afternoon.
Two cases were registered against him, including sexual assault and disclosing the identity of the victim. The bail on June 27th was granted after depositing Rs5 lakh (approx Dhs24,000) and with two sureties on the condition that Babu will be available for questioning from 9am to 6pm until July 3, according to a report in Malayalam Manorama.
Babu, 46, was booked for sexual assualt after an actress accused him of sexually abusing her in exchange for roles at his home in Kochi.
A day earlier, the Association For Malalayalm Movie Artists (AMMA) recieved flak for extending their support towards the actor and claiming that any action to exclude him from the industry body would only be taken after the court passes a judgment.
In April, Babu came under fire when he revealed the identity of the survivor in a Facebook Live post. The actor had fled India when the complaint was registered against him in Kerala.
Earlier, the Kerala High Court had granted anticipatory bail to Babu and had directed him to surrender before the investigating officer on June 27 for interrogation.
On April 22, Babu came under the spotlight when an actress from Kozhikode filed a complaint in Ernakulam that she was raped and beaten up by Vijay Babu several times. She also accused him of intoxicating her before sexual abuse.
As a retaliatory measure, Babu was traveling outside India took to his Facebook account to reveal the identity of the survivor, and claimed that he would take measures to reclaim his tarnished reputation. He returned to India from Georgia only after he got anticipatory bail. Currently, he is awaiting station bail.
