The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for April 22 on a plea challenging the Karnataka High Court's decision to grant bail to Kannada actors Darshan Thoogudeepa, Pavithra Gowda, and others in the Renukaswamy murder case. This decision follows an urgent mentioning by advocate Anil C Nishani on behalf of the Karnataka government.
Darshan and his partner Pavithra Gowda are accused of orchestrating the murder of Renukaswamy, a pharmacist from Chitradurga, who was found dead near a stormwater drain in Bengaluru. Renukaswamy had allegedly sent derogatory messages to Pavithra Gowda.
A bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan fixed the date while directing the accused respondents to submit their counters in the interim period.
Previously, on January 24, the Supreme Court had declined to stay the high court's bail order but agreed to examine the Karnataka government's petition questioning its validity. The court had issued notices to Darshan Thoogudeepa and other respondents after hearing arguments presented by senior advocate Sidharth Luthra.
The Karnataka government had initially approached the Supreme Court on January 6, 2025, challenging the bail granted to Darshan and 16 others accused.
Darshan Thoogudeepa, named as accused number two, had been in custody since June 11, 2024. He was granted interim bail on medical grounds on October 30, 2024, after spending 131 days in custody. The high court later extended regular bail to Darshan Thoogudeepa and Pavithra Gowda, the primary accused, along with all other individuals named in the chargesheet filed by Bengaluru police in September.
Recently Darshan resumed shooting for his upcoming film Devil: The Hero.