Indrajith Lankesh accuses actor Darshan of assaulting Dalit waiter in Mysuru hotel

Bengaluru: Sandalwood 'Challenging Star' Darshan is in news again for allegedly assaulting a Dalit waiter in a Mysuru hotel. The actor was in news recently when a woman tried to blackmail his friend into paying Rs 25 lakh in return for hushing up a forgery case. Journalist-turned-director Indrajith Lankesh on Thursday accused the police of "settling" the assault case between the two parties, instead of filing a criminal case against the guilty.

Alleging that the police department was providing shield to celebrities who find themselves in a tight spot, Indrajith Lankesh on Thursday met Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai and urged him to give directions to the police to investigate the case.

"The police stations have turned into settlement centres and the common man is getting no justice. I have proof that Darshan along with his friends has assaulted a Dalit waiter at Hotel Sandesh The Prince, Mysuru, belonging to JD(S) MLC Sandesh Nagaraj, during a late night party. The waiter sustained injuries to his eye which resulted in blurred vision. The following day, the injured waiter's wife came to the hotel with a broom demanding action against those who assaulted her husband. But the police played mediators and brought about a compromise between the two parties," Lankesh alleged.

"Being a journalist and responsible citizen, I cannot be a mute spectator to what celebrities are doing. The common man is suffering in all this. I have enough evidence to prove Darshan and his friends Rakesh Papanna, son of a close aide of former chief minister Siddaramaiah, and Harsha Melanta, assaulted the waiter. The language used by the celebrity during a press conference in connection with loan fraud is not acceptable. I am shocked to see the violent language being used by the actor during the press meet," said Indrajith, claiming that the CCTV footage containing the episode in the hotel was deleted.

On July 3, Harsha Melantha and Rakesh Papanna, lodged a complaint against three persons Aruna Kumari, a Bengaluru-based woman who claimed to be a bank manager, and her alleged accomplices, Madhukeshava and Nandeesh. It was reported that the trio allegedly tried to blackmail Harsha and Rakesh. They accused Harsha and Rakesh of forging documents pertaining to a farm house of actor Darshan in Mysuru to secure a loan of Rs 25 crore. They allegedly demanded Rs 25 lakh from Harsha and Rakesh for hushing up the 'fraud'.

Meanwhile, the owner of the star hotel in Mysuru dismissed Indrajith's allegation. "No one was assaulted," Sandesh, hotel MD and son of Sandesh Nagaraj, said. "It is true Darshan hosted a poolside party at our hotel. He did not assault our waiter. He only shouted at him for the delay in service. I pacified both parties, and asked Darshan to retire to his room as he was high. I apologised to the waiter for Darshan's behaviour. Such incidents are common in the hospitality business and we did not file any complaint." Reacting to the incident, Sandesh stated that the waiter was no longer with them as he was an intern from Maharashtra and had returned to his State earlier this month.

Sandesh further explains that CCTV footage was removed every 10 days. "Usually, we get interns from Bihar, Maharashtra and Chennai to work with us for six months. At present the waiter has returned home. I am not aware of his caste as we only ask the employee his qualification, his experience and language skills. The CCTV footage of the incident is not available as it took place more than a fortnight ago and our CCTV is refreshed every 10 days."

Hitting back at Indrajith, Darshan sarcastically observed that he (Indrajit) is a big "investigator". "Let him prove the case. There are several invisible hands working against me," said Darshan. Indrajit Lankesh was the first from Sandalwood to speak out when the film industry came under Central Crime Branch (CCB) lens last year for drug abuse. The director said drug abuse in the industry was nothing new.