(L) An injured Baburaj being taken to hospitalWhat led to the attack on actor Baburaj in Munnar? The Malayalam actor, recuperating from a slash on his chest in a hospital in Kochi, says he was offended by the kind of reports that portrayed him as a real-life baddie.
Initial reports said Baburaj was hacked by a neighbor when he tried to drain a pond at a disputed land in Adimali near Munnar.
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Onmanorama caught up with the actor to get his version of the events. He said he was a victim of fraud and negative publicity.
"I bought this property three years ago. I had paid the entire amount. But when I tried to register the title deed, I was told that the seller was not the actual owner of the land! His name is Sunny Thomas and his father's name is Thomas Sunny. The land was known as Sunny's. So I did not feel anything was amiss.
"Actually, the four sons of Thomas Sunny have rights over this land. They did not know about the transaction. All the legal complications associated with the land were revealed to me only after the transaction was complete. I had filed a case of fraud and impersonation against him before the Adimali court.
"I had not gone to drain the pond as suggested in the media. I was trying to clean it up because the water level had gone down. I have been drawing water from the pond for two years with my neighbor's consent. I had even built up the sides of the pond. I went there with an injunction order from the court since I suspected that he might create a row. He just hacked me without any provocation even as I said that I had a court order with me.
"I bought this land from him when he said he had to sell it to marry off his daughter. Everyone knows it. He conducted his daughter's wedding with my money. He was known to be a good man but he refuses to cooperate with anyone. I had even given him Rs 50,000 when he was involved in a car accident.
"The incident has led to several wrong reports. I was not trying to drain somebody's pond. The moment my name is dropped, people think there is some problem. That pains me the most. The wound is deep. My chest muscle is cut.
"I bought a land to help someone and got a case in return. When I tried to clean up the pond on the property, I got hacked. On top of that, there are reports going round that I did something wrong. You do not have to make me a villain in real life only because I do negative roles in movies," he said.
