A second case has been registered against popular Malayalam producer-actor Vijay Babu, said Kerala police on Thursday, 28 April.
“Two First Information Reports (FIR) have been filed against Vijay Babu. Prima facie, this is a proved case. Since he disclosed the survivor's identity on a public forum, he is charged under IPC Section 228A (disclosure of the identity of the victim in certain offences)."V I Kuriakose, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Kochi
A rape case was already registered against him and he has been charged with IPC sections 376 (sexual assault), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt).
To further tighten case, the police have issued a lookout circular against him across all airports. Searches for evidence at his multiple properties across the city will begin soon.
A Malayalam film actor had accused Babu of rape and physical assault. She had also alleged that he forced her to ‘drink alcohol or take happy pills.' Vijay Babu then hosted a Facebook Live on Tuesday, 26 April, to deny the allegations. In the live he also revealed the survivor’s name, in violation of the law.
Cops Kept Complaint Confidential Considering the High-Profile of Accused
The female actor registered a complaint with the city police on 22 April. Babu has not been reachable since the police launched the probe. However, based on his Facebook posts, it is suspected that he is in Dubai.
Sources told The Quint that the police had registered the case for rape last week but kept it confidential to gather evidence, considering the high-profile of the accused. However, Babu allegedly got to know about the case and fled the country, a source said.
The senior police officer told The Quint that they have launched an investigation.
The Facebook page of Women Against Sexual Harassment shared the survivor’s statement in which Babu is accused of behaving like a ‘saviour and friend’ to sexually exploit her. “He was like a monster to me,” her statement read.
“Whenever I was conscious, I denied consent for engaging in sex. But for him it was never an issue and disregarding my protest he has raped me several times during the past one and a half months,” the survivor alleged. She added that she was afraid of speaking up because of the ‘clout, influence, and power he wielded in the film industry’,” she alleged.
Police Keen on Arresting Babu Soon
The Kerala police have already recorded the statement of the survivor before the magistrate under CrPC 164 and held her medical examination.
The police told The Quint, “We are circling back to the locations mentioned in the complaint and are gathering evidence. We will ensure that the accused is arrested at the earliest.”
The police are deliberating on the procedures to bring the accused back home from the foreign country.
Meanwhile, Babu has denied the allegations and has said that he will file a defamation suit against the survivor. He is also likely to move for an anticipatory bail plea in the next few days. The video, in which he had named the complainant, stands removed from social media now.
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