Bengaluru: Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa was arrested on Thursday, hours after the Supreme Court tore into the Karnataka High Court’s decision to grant him bail in the Renukaswamy murder case. The apex court called the HC order “perverse” and “illogical”, warning that releasing the actor risked tilting the trial and intimidating witnesses.
Darshan was reportedly travelling when the SC cancelled his bail. He returned to the city soon after the Bengaluru Police informed him of the order. He was arrested at his wife’s apartment in Hosakerehalli.
Actress Pavithra Gowda, Darshan’s partner and co-accused in the case, was also arrested from her Bengaluru house after the SC cancelled her bail as well. Warning that “No man should think he is above the law”, the apex Court came down heavily on the High Court for the “mechanical” use of its powers, adding in no uncertain terms that the murder case must now proceed without the shield of interim release for either accused.
Renukaswamy murder case
Darshan was first arrested on June 11, 2024, as the prime accused in the high-profile murder case. The High Court had accorded him bail on December 13, 2024.
The case pertains to the killing of Renukaswamy, who was allegedly sending obscene messages to Pavithra Gowda. According to the investigators, Darshan was enraged by the messages. Renukaswamy was reportedly abducted by Darshan’s associates on June 7, 2024, and on June 8, his body was found dumped in a drain.
The 3,991-page chargesheet details that Darshan allegedly admitted in custody to beating Renukaswamy with a tree branch, kicking him repeatedly, and directing some of his own fans to abduct the victim to “teach him a lesson”.