The Kerala High Court on Thursday, June 2, extended till June 7 the interim protection from arrest given to Malayalam actor Vijay Babu, who is accused in a rape case. Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas, while extending the interim protection, made it clear that it was subject to the conditions that Babu will not influence the survivor nor will he talk to the media.
During the proceedings, the court was informed by the prosecution that the actor is being questioned. Babu's lawyers told the court that he was cooperating with the investigation. The actor-producer landed at Cochin International Airport on Wednesday and hours later on the same day appeared before the police for questioning as directed by the high court.
The high court, on May 31, while restraining the police and immigration department from arresting him till June 2 had directed Babu to appear before the investigating officer immediately after arriving here. After he appeared before the police on June 1, he was questioned for several hours.
The court's directions had come on a plea moved by Babu seeking anticipatory bail in the rape case against him. In his plea, Babu has alleged that the rape case has been filed against him to blackmail him.
He has been accused of allegedly sexually assaulting a female actor and disclosing the victim's identity through a Facebook live session. He has claimed that he was innocent and was "highly aggrieved" by the one-sided approach of the authorities to make him a "scapegoat for the purpose of news and the media."
As the actor, who is also the founder of the production company Friday Film House, disclosed the survivor's name and identity, which is an offence, another case was also registered against him.
The survivor, who appeared in movies produced by Vijay Babu's production house, had lodged a complaint with the police on April 22 and detailed through a Facebook post the physical assault and sexual exploitation she had allegedly suffered at the hands of the producer-actor for the past one-and-half months.