A Bengaluru court on Monday, November 3, framed charges of murder, criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, and unlawful assembly against Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, his partner Pavithra Gowda, and 15 others in connection with the murder of Renukaswamy. All 17 accused pleaded not guilty.
The accused were produced before the Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge IP Naik in the afternoon, where the court read out the charges. Recording their pleas of not guilty, the judge scheduled the next hearing for November 10, when the trial date is expected to be fixed.
Following the proceedings, Darshan and the other accused were taken back to Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, where they remain in judicial custody.
Darshan is accused of killing Renukaswamy, a resident of Chitradurga, who had allegedly sent lewd messages and obscene pictures to Pavitra Gowda, the actor’s long-time romantic partner.
According to the police, Darshan wanted to teach Renukaswamy a lesson. So he allegedly conspired with his fans Raghavendra, Jagadish, and Ravi to abduct and torture him. The deceased was confined in a shed 200 km away in Bengaluru and tortured to death.
Subsequently, his body was dumped in a gutter near an apartment complex, police said. The body was found by a security guard.
Police investigating the case, arrested Darshan, Pavitra and 15 others on June 11, 2024, under charges of murder, kidnapping, extortion, use of criminal force, use of deadly force, and criminal conspiracy among others.
