NEW DELHI: The Karnataka high court on Wednesday granted interim bail for six weeks to jailed actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, prime accused in the Renukaswamy murder case.
The bail was granted to the actor on medical grounds to undergo spine surgery. As per the bail condition, the actor has been asked to surrender his passport.
Darshan is currently lodged in Karnataka’s Ballari jail.
Justice S. Vishwajith Shetty reserved the order on Tuesday on actor Darshan’s interim bail application after hearing comprehensive arguments from his legal counsel, senior advocate C.V. Nagesh, and the state’s public prosecutor, P. Prasanna Kumar.
During the hearing, the state submitted medical reports in a sealed cover from doctors at Ballari Central Prison, where Darshan is being held, and from the head of Neurology at a government hospital in Ballari.
Nagesh argued that Darshan is experiencing numbness in both feet and requested permission for him to undergo surgery at a private hospital in Mysuru, with the actor covering all associated costs.
According to police reports, 33-year-old Renukaswamy, a fan of Darshan, allegedly sent obscene messages to Pavithra Gowda, Darshan’s friend and a co-accused in the case, which angered Darshan and supposedly led to the murder.
Renukaswamy’s body was discovered on June 9 near a stormwater drain by an apartment in Sumanahalli, Bengaluru. Police investigations revealed that Raghavendra, one of Darshan’s fan club members in Chitradurga, brought Renukaswamy to a shed in R.R. Nagar, claiming that Darshan wanted to meet him. It was there that Renukaswamy was reportedly tortured and murdered.
The post-mortem report revealed that Renukaswamy, a native of Chitradurga, died from shock and hemorrhage due to multiple blunt injuries.
Police have identified Pavithra, the primary accused, as a key instigator in Renukaswamy’s murder, asserting that she conspired with others involved and played an active role in the crime.
(With agency inputs)