Bail plea to be filed after Darshan is sent to judicial custody, says counsel

Bengaluru: The counsel representing arrested Kannada superstar Darshan said on Thursday that the bail petition seeking his release will be filed in the court after he is sent to judicial custody.

Speaking to reporters after visiting Darshan at the police station in Bengaluru, senior advocate Anil Babu stated that Darshan will be produced before the court later in the afternoon. "It is not known whether the prosecution will seek an extension of police custody. We have to wait until the application is submitted to the court,” he added.

“Most probably, there is no need for police custody as the investigation is over. We have to see what happens. If Darshan is sent to judicial custody today, we will take time, and within a week, we will move the bail petition before the court,” he maintained. “We are not filing the bail petition today. Our team will sit and discuss and then make a decision,” he said.

Answering a question, Ravi Babu said that Darshan was doing well in terms of health in the custody of the police.

Commenting on conducting a DNA test on Darshan and the other accused, another counsel, Ranganath Reddy, said that it was not possible for the police to conduct the DNA test without the consent of the court. The prosecution will submit the case diary to the court, which is a document of the investigation. The advocates representing the accused won’t have access to it. We will know about the development once the charge sheet is filed before the court,” he concluded.

Darshan, his 'partner' and co-star Pavithra Gowda, and 15 others have been arrested on charges of murdering Renukaswamy (33), a resident of Chitradurga. Two of the accused have been sent to judicial custody.

The probe has so far revealed that Renukaswamy was a big fan of Darshan and had sent derogatory messages to Pavithra Gowda on social media. He was allegedly kidnapped, brought to Bengaluru, kept in a shed, and brutally tortured to death.

Sources claimed that on Wednesday Darshan reportedly admitted to his involvement in the murder case, as per the remand copy submitted to the 24th ACMM court. According to the remand copy, Darshan gave Rs 30 lakh to Pradosh, an accused in the case, to manage the police and lawyers, and to pay those who disposed of the body. The police have reportedly seized the money from Pradosh's residence.

Darshan was jailed for 14 days in 2011 for allegedly assaulting his wife. He was accused of burning his wife's face with cigarettes, hitting her with slippers, and threatening to kill their son.