Darshan transferred to Ballari, tight security deployed on jail premises

The Kannada actor's partner and prime accused in the case, Pavithra Gowda, will remain in the Bengaluru Central Prison

Bengaluru: Jailed Kannada superstar Darshan, an accused in the kidnapping and murder case of a fan, was taken out of Bengaluru Central Prison in the early hours of Thursday, sources confirmed, adding that he was being transferred to Ballari Jail.

This comes after the emergence of photos and videos showing Darshan receiving preferential treatment in prison. The police took him out in a Bolero vehicle, departing from Bengaluru Central Prison at 4.30 am.

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Sources said that the prison authorities have covered the vehicle’s windows with curtains to block the media and public from viewing Darshan. The authorities have changed the route to Ballari. Instead of travelling through the usual route of Chitradurga to Ballari, the vehicle was taken on the route of Chikkaballapur-Bagepalli on Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur route.

The convoy was headed by ACP Bharat Reddy, the sources said. Meanwhile, tight security has been arranged in the surrounding areas of Ballari Jail to prevent gatherings of Darshan’s fans. The 24th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) court on Tuesday ordered to shift jailed Kannada superstar Darshan, an accused in the kidnapping and murder case, from the Bengaluru Central Prison to Bellary Central jail.

The submission was made to the court by the Chief Superintendent in the wake of a photograph of Darshan hanging out with three others, including a rowdy sheeter, on the lawns of the jail emerging on social media on Sunday.

Darshan’s partner and prime accused in the case, Pavithra Gowda, will remain in the Bengaluru Central Prison. The other associates of Darshan in the case — Pavan, Raghavendra and Nandeesh — will be shifted to Mysuru prison. Jagadish and Laxmana will be sent to Shivamogga jail, Dhanraj to Dharwad jail, Vinay to Vijayapura jail, Nagaraj to Kalaburagi jail, and Pradoosh to Belagavi jail.

Anukumar and Deepak will remain in the Bengaluru Central Prison. Four accused, Ravi, Karthik, Nikhil and Keshava Murthy were shifted to Tumakuru prison earlier. Including two jailers, seven staffers attached to the Bengaluru Central Prison were suspended and three FIRs have been lodged in connection with providing luxury treatment to Darshan inside the prison.