Renukaswamy murder case: No pressure on me to shield actor Darshan, says CM Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said he was not under pressure from any minister or MLA to shield leading Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa in a murder case.

The CM also said that he will never entertain such requests.

“There is a rumour doing rounds that there was pressure on me, which is not true. There is no pressure. Neither from a minister nor any MLA (to favour Darshan). These are all far from the truth,” Siddaramaiah told reporters here He said, “Even if someone puts pressure on me, I will not entertain their requests. We have given free hand to the police and I have told them to take action as per law.”

On changing the Special Public Prosecutor appointed by the government for the trial in the case, the Chief Minister said he has no such information. "There is no proposal in the first place (to change the SPP).”

Renukaswamy, a fan of the actor Darshan, was abducted from his hometown of Chitradurga by a key fan club member and his associates and brought to Bengaluru where he was tortured and killed. His body was found on June nine.

According to police sources, Renukaswamy had sent obscene messages to Gowda, which enraged the actor, allegedly leading to his murder.

Police have arrested 17 people including Darshan and his actress friend Pavithra Gowda.