Adimali: The police Wednesday arrested a couple on charges of attacking actor Baburaj here the other day.
The arrested, Tharamuttam Mathew alias Sunny, 54, and his wife Lissie, 48, of Kallar, were remanded in judicial custody by a local court.
The condition of Baburaj, who sustained cut injuries on his chest and left arm after being attacked with a machete, is said to be stable.
While Sunny was booked under Section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code, a case of abetment was registered against Lissie.
They were taken into custody based on the statement made by Baburaj, who is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Aluva.
I'm not a villain in real life: Baburaj opens up on Adimali attack
Baburaj was attacked by Mathew on the premises of his resort - Emarald Wyte Mist - at Kambiline near Adimali following a dispute over sharing of water.
In 2012, Baburaj had purchased five cents of land from the accused to dig a pond to meet the water needs of the resort. The two were at loggerheads after the excessive use water from the pond allegedly led to depletion in the groundwater level and drying up of wells in the area.
Tuesday morning, Baburaj brought in a few laborers to clean the pond. Irked by the move, Mathew got into a heated argument with him before returning to his home located adjacent to the actor’s property. After a few minutes, he came back with a machete and hacked Baburaj.
Lissie was a witness to the entire episode, but instead of pacifying her husband she allegedly incited him to commit the crime, the police said.
After recording their arrest, the police produced them before the First Class Magistrate Court, Adimali. Mathew was sent to the sub-jail in Devikulam while Lissie was remanded in the Kottayam sub-jail.
Baburaj rejects allegations
Meanwhile, the actor dismissed allegations that he cheated Mathew by not paying the full amount for the property.
“The owner of the land was his father. We came to know that only when we went to register the property. I failed to notice the mistake initially due to the similarity in the names of the father and the son. Sunny Mathew’s siblings also have rights in the property, but he sold a portion of it without informing them. I have lodged a case against him for criminal conspiracy and cheating by impersonation,” Baburaj said.
“I went to clean the pond after obtaining an order from the Munnar Special Tribunal. He attacked me without any provocation,” the actor added.