Reacting to the Kerala High Court's order on Wednesday granting anticipatory bail to actor-producer Vijay Babu, who is accused of rape, the victim's family termed it "disappointing". The actress' father said it's really disappointing that the court has given bail to Vijay Babu. Vijay Babu Gets Anticipatory Bail by Kerala High Court in Actress Sexual Assault Case.

"This will send a wrong message to the society at large that the rich and mighty will get away by doing anything. We will now speak to our legal experts to decide the future course of action arising out the verdict," said the victim's father, who further added that his daughter has been in the film industry for the past few years and she has had a good track record also.

Granting him anticipatory bail, the court also asked Vijay Babu to appear before the police probe team on June 27 and the police have been granted time to interrogate him -- seven days between June 27 and July 3. The court has also asked him not to leave the state under any circumstances.

On April 22, an actress from Kozhikode filed a complaint in Ernakulam that she was raped and beaten up by Vijay Babu several times in a flat in Kochi. She also accused him of intoxicating her before sexual abuse. As the news surfaced, Vijay Babu appeared live on his social media handle claiming that he was the "real victim" in this case, adding that he would take appropriate legal steps against the complainant whom he also named. Vijay Babu Rape Case: Kerala High Court Grants Anticipatory Bail to Actor-Producer.

The police, apart from the initial complaint, have registered a second case against him for disclosing the name of the complainant. Vijay Babu who had left the country after the actress filed a case against him, returned after the court gave him a temporary relief that he will not be arrested till his anticipatory bail plea is disposed and till then whenever the probe team seeks his presence he should present himself before them, which he did.

After fleeing the country, he had spent some time in the UAE and then moved to Georgia. Meanwhile the Kochi City Police Commissioner C.H. Nagaraju said they will leave nothing to chance in the probe and will be doing their job.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 22, 2022 04:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).