Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa and his long-time partner of 10 years, actor Pavithra Gowda, were arrested by the Bengaluru police on June 11 for their alleged involvement in a murder case. Darshan and Pavithra were detained in the murder of a man named Renuka Swamy. They are now sent to police custody till June 17 by a Bengaluru Magistrate court. Here's the timeline of the murder case.
June 8: Renuka Swamy, who was a pharmacist by profession, and said to be a fan of Dasrhan, allegedly sent vulgar messages to Pavithra Gowda on Instagram. For those unversed, Darshan and Pavithra have been in a relationship for a decade despite the former being married since 2003.
When Darshan came to know about the messages, he found out that Renuka lives in Chitradurga. The actor allegedly contacted Raghavendra, who runs his fan club there, and he asked him to bring Renuka to Bengaluru.
Renuka was then allegedly taken to a place in RR Nagar, where he was thrashed which led to his death due to multiple injuries. His body was said to be dumped in a drain near Summanahalli. Darshan and Pavithra were present at the spot when he was killed, as per police.
PTI quoted police sources as saying, “Darshan beat up Renukaswamy with a belt. After he fell unconscious, his accomplices thrashed him with sticks. Further, they threw him against a wall, which proved fatal.”
June 9: A food delivery boy saw dogs eating a human body. Police was informed and they registered a murder case after noticing injury marks on the body.
June 10: While the police was investigating the murder case, two men arrived at Kamakshipalya police station. They claimed that they killed Renuka Swamy at a shed near RR Nagar over a financial dispute. The further probe led them to call records and they found Darshan and Pavithra's connection to the murder case.
June 11: Darshan and Pavithra and 11 others were apprehended in connection to the murder. Post his arrest at a hotel in Mysuru, Darshan was taken to the Annapoorneshwari Nagar police station for questioning. Pavithra was also detained on the same day from her residence near RR Nagar.
Eleven others arrested in the case are Vinay, Pradosh, Nandeesha, Pavan, Lakshman, Deepak, Nagaraju, Nikhil, Karthik, Keshavmurthy and Raghavendra.
After the medical tests were done, Pavithra who is listed as A1 and Darshan as A2, were produced before the court, where they were ordered to sent to 6-day police custody.
June 12: Reportedly, the Bengaluru police have already seized cars used in the murder, which also include a Jeep owned by Darshan.
As per a report in TV9 Kannada, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara has given a free hand to the police in the case against ‘repeat offender’ Darshan.
Renuka Swamy Murder Case Latest Updates
As per reports, a driver named Ravi surrendered to the Deputy Superintendent of Police's office in Chitradurga on Thursday, June 13 night. Another accused identified as Raghu alias Raghavendra along with others, arranged a taxi to take Renuka to Bengaluru on June 8. They took Ravi's cab in Chitradurga and reached Bengaluru later that evening. After dropping them, Ravi went into hiding. Later, when he reached out to the taxi association in Chitradurga, they asked him to surrender to the police, the sources said as per a report in NDTV.
A new CCTV footage also emerged in connection with the murder. The video is from a toll plaza in Karnataka's Chitradurga, which showed a white car which allegedly carried Renuka Swamy from Chitradurga to Bengaluru.
The latest update is on the autopsy report. Reportedly, Renuka Swamy's autopsy report showed 15 wounds on his body. It has wounds and marks on his head, abdomen, chest and other parts. The report also indicated his head crashed a mini truck parked in a shed in Bengaluru. Wooden logs, a leather belt, and a rope that were apparently used to torture Renuka Swamy, were also recovered by the police.
