Kochi, Oct 14 (IANS): A local court granted bail to popular South Indian actor Bala here on Monday, hours after he was arrested after being booked under the Juvenile Justice Act.

Bala’s bail plea came up before the Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate Court which granted him bail, but it has set strict conditions.

He has been specifically instructed not to indulge in any public expression on the case and he should not speak to the media also.

The 41-year-old actor and his wife had separated in 2019 after getting married in 2010. His ex-wife is a popular singer in TV shows.

Their marriage turned sour and since 2015 the two have been fighting even in the public.

The latest case against the actor was filed by his ex-wife at the Kadavanthara police station in Kochi on Saturday.

The police immediately registered a case for derogatory remarks against his ex-wife and their child and asked Bala to appear for questioning.

As he failed to turn up, the police on Monday morning reached his home and took him into custody and later his arrest was recorded.

Meanwhile, the counsel for Bala said the entire episode is nothing but a conspiracy and they will go forward as per the law.

Even though they have separated, things flared up in the past few weeks between the two resulting in heated exchanges.

This started when their daughter posted a video on social media that Bala had been tormenting her. Bala, however, denied this and wrote on his social media account that it was "the most painful experience of his and he would not argue as a father who argues with his daughter is not a man".

Bala hails from a hugely popular film family where his father and grandfather are prominent personalities and they own the Arunachala Studios.

His father, Jeyakumar, directed over 350 films and documentaries.

Bala made his debut in the Telugu film in 2002 and has had huge success in South Indian films, including the Malayalam film industry.

He made his directorial debut with the 2012 Malayalam action film 'The Hitlist' in which he played the lead role.

Incidentally, last year the actor had undergone a liver transplant surgery.