Renukaswamy Murder Case: SC Cancels Actor Darshan's Bail, Sets Aside Karnataka HC Order

The Supreme Court on Thursday cancelled the bail of actor Darshan in connection to the Renukaswamy murder case.

In a major setback to Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, the Supreme Court on Thursday cancelled his bail in connection to the Renukaswamy murder case, setting aside a Karnataka High Court order. Karnataka had challenged the High Court's bail order dated December 13, 2024, granting bail to the actor who is allegedly involved in the killing of his 33-year-old 'fan' over sending obscene messages to actress Pavithra Gowda.

The Court held that the Karnataka High Court granted bail to the accused persons in a mechanical manner and observed that the High Court's order suffered from pervesity. A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan passed the order, setting aside an earlier Karnataka High Court ruling.

"We considered the grant of bail as well as cancellation, and it is evident that the high court order reflects mechanical exercise of power... The grant of bail will impact the trial, and the witnesses can be influenced," observed Justice Mahadevan.

Praising him for penning down the order, Justice Pardiwala remarked during the hearing, "J Mahadevan has pronounced a very erudite judgment. It is ineffable. It conveys a message that however big the accused may be, he or she is not above the law."

On July 24, the bench had reserved the judgment and questioned the state whether there was any evidence to corroborate the statements of two eyewitnesses who claimed Darshan's involvement in the crime. At the same time, the bench expressed serious concerns about the High Court's exercise of discretion in granting bail to Darshan.

On July 17, the court orally observed that it did not feel the Karnataka High Court had exercised its discretion in granting bail to actor Darshan. It orally asked Darshan's lawyers to give good reasons why the court should not interfere with the High Court's judgment. Justice Pardiwala orally remarked that the High Court had essentially delivered an acquittal judgment in favour of the accused.

In June 2024, Renuka Swamy was allegedly abducted from Chitradurga and tortured for three days in a shed in Bengaluru. The deceased later succumbed to the assault, and the body was dumped in a drain, according to the police report. After the Sessions Court denied bail, the accused Darshan, Pavitra, Anu Kumar, Lakshman M, V Vinay, Jagadish, Pradush S Rao, and Nagaraju R moved the High Court seeking bail.