Darshan, Pavithra Gowda among 5 sent to Bengaluru jail after Supreme Court cancels bail order

Bengaluru: Popular Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, his friend Pavithra Gowda and three others were remanded in judicial custody on Thursday after being arrested by the Bengaluru police hours following the Supreme Court's cancellation of their bail.

Pavithra (accused 1), Darshan (A2), Pradoosh S Rao alias Pradoosh (A14), Lakshman M (A12) and Nagaraju R (A11) were sent to the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison in Bengaluru. Following the cancellation of the bail, Bengaluru police had formed separate teams to trace them.

Pavithra was first arrested from her house in RR Nagar, followed by Pradoosh from Girinagar, Lakshman from RPC Layout and Nagaraju from Mysuru. Anu Kumar alias Anu (A7) and Jagadeesh alias Jagga (A6) were the last to be arrested from Chitradurga. They will be produced before the court on Friday, the police said.

Darshan arrived at his wife’s apartment in Hosakerehalli at around 4.00 pm and entered through the back gate in a separate car and hoodwinked television cameras, while his well-known red-coloured luxury SUV entered through the front door.

CCTV footage earlier in the day showed Darshan’s red SUV near the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border. Sources said that Darshan was at his friend’s farmhouse in Kodagu and had travelled to a village bordering Tamil Nadu to take part in a horse fair. He left for Bengaluru as the news of the SC order broke, sources said.

Darshan was arrested shortly after he met his wife and son and was escorted to the Annapoorneshwari Nagar police station, where other accused were kept. Darshan wore a mask as he left his wife’s apartment in a police jeep.

After the medical examinations were conducted at the police station, the five accused, including Darshan, were taken to the judge’s residence in Koramangala. Police had made elaborate security arrangements both outside the police station and near the judge’s residence as fans of the actor had gathered.

Darshan, Pavithra and 15 others were granted bail last year after their arrest in the brutal murder of Renukaswmay from Chitradurga in June 2024. Police had filed a 3,991-page chargesheet, and the key charges invoked on them were murder, criminal conspiracy, kidnapping or abducting to murder and disappearance of evidence.

Renukaswamy’s mutilated body was found disposed of near a stormwater drain in Sumanahalli on June 9. On June 11, Darshan, Pavithra and seven others were arrested. The police nabbed the others in the subsequent days.

The State government had moved a special leave petition before the Supreme Court in January 2025, challenging the bail granted by the Karnataka High Court. Darshan was moved to Ballari Central Jail from the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison in Bengaluru in August 2024 after photographs of him were leaked, in which he was seen smoking and hobnobbing with notorious criminals inside the prison.