Court extends judicial custody of Darshan & other accused

NT Correspondent Bengaluru: A court here on Tuesday extended till September 30 the judicial custody of Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa along with his friend Pavithra Gowda and others, who are accused in the Renukaswamy murder case. All the 17 accused, including Darshan and Pavithra, were produced before the 24th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court through video conferencing from various prisons across the state, where they are lodged, as their judicial custody ended today. The police presented some technical evidence related to the case to the court.

Police on September 4 submitted to the court a 3,991- page preliminary charge sheet in the case. The 47-year-old actor is currently lodged in Ballari prison. He was shifted there from the Parappana Agrahara Central jail here by obtaining court permission, after a photograph of him hanging out with three others, including a rowdy-sheeter, on the lawns of the jail had gone viral, sparking an uproar. In the picture, the actor is seen in a relaxed mood, sitting on a chair and holding a cigarette and a coffee mug.

Also, a purported video of Darshan speaking to a person over a video call from the prison too had surfaced on social media. The court had also permitted shifting of other co-accused in the murder case to various prisons in the state. Other accused Pawan, Raghavendra and Nandish are now lodged in Mysuru, Jagadish and Lakshmana in Shivamogga, Dhanraj in Dharwad, Vinay in Vijayapura, Nagaraj in Kalaburagi/ Gulbarga Jail, and Pradosh in Belagavi Jail. Three accused ' Pavithra Gowda, Anukumar, and Deepak continue to remain at Parappana Agrahara Central Jail here.

Four accused Ravi, Karthik, Nikhil and Keshavamurthy were earlier shifted to Tumakuru prison and they continue to remain lodged there. Nine prison officials, including the Chief Superinndent of the Parappana Agrahara jail, were suspended over their "lapses" .