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Hours after the Supreme Court cancelled the bail of all accused in the Renukaswamy murder case, Bengaluru police arrested Kannada actor Darshan and prime accused Pavithra Gowda on Thursday, August 14.
According to media reports, Darshan was arrested while he was visiting his wife’s residence in Bengaluru’s Hosakerehalli, reportedly entering through the exit gate to avoid the media. After meeting his wife and son, he was taken into police custody. Pavithra was taken into custody from her residence in RR Nagar by the Govindarajnagar police and will be produced before a trial court after a medical examination.
Police also arrested three co-accused, Pradoosh S Rao alias Pradoosh, Lakshman M, and Nagaraju R, following the apex court’s decision.
The arrests came after a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan set aside the Karnataka High Court’s December 2024 bail order, calling it “perverse” and “wholly unwarranted.” The Supreme Court said the High Court granted bail “in a mechanical manner” and that its decision suffered from “serious legal infirmity” and was an “arbitrary exercise” of discretion. The bench also warned the state government against providing special treatment to the accused in prison.
Renukaswamy, a 33-year-old pharmacist from Chitradurga, was allegedly abducted on June 8, 2024, tortured for three days in a shed in Bengaluru, and his body dumped in a stormwater drain. The alleged motive was obscene messages he had sent to Pavithra Gowda. Police have filed a 3,991-page chargesheet naming 17 accused, including Darshan and Pavithra.