(Trigger warning: Mentions of rape, assault, violence)
The Kerala High Court on Wednesday, 22 June, granted anticipatory bail to actor-producer Vijay Babu in a rape case, subject to conditions.
The actor-producer is accused of raping a young actor and is also booked for publicly revealing her identity on social media.
Days ago, an older petition filed by Vijay's wife in May 2018 surfaced, which accused him of assaulting her.
The petition, asking for a restraining order, alleged that Vijay had physically assaulted his wife on multiple occasions under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Sources say that this petition was used by the prosecution in the 2022 case of sexual assault to oppose Vijay's bail plea.
The survivor in the 2022 case – a young woman actor – alleged that Vijay presented his marriage as practically a "dead one," and that he claimed he had not had a good relationship with his wife for the last eight years, but stayed in the marriage only for the sake of the child.
However, the Malayalam film actor-producer maintained in his bail plea that he led a happy married life.
There were also allegations that a person linked to Vijay offered Rs 1 crore in the 2022 case of sexual assault to the survivor who lodged the complaint against him, in an attempt to get her to withdraw the case.
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