The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday, October 30, granted six weeks interim bail to murder-accused actor Darshan on medical grounds. 

Justice S Vishwajit Shetty took note of medical reports saying the actor requires surgery on his spine and feet, and granted Darshan bail to undergo surgery, Bar & Bench reported.

The court granted bail on the condition that Darshan surrender his passport before the court. “I have allowed him to appear before a hospital of his choice and within one week, he has to submit a medical report and details of how much time will be needed for the procedure among other things,” the court said.

Darshan had sought the interim bail stating that he was suffering from severe back pain and was being treated by doctors. His counsel had argued that Darshan needed to undergo a spine surgery as the pain was not subsiding. 

"The jail authorities are giving him physiotherapy treatment. But, the back pain is not subsiding. The authorities are making security arrangements at the Vijayapura Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS) to take Darshan for the MRI scanning," his counsel had said.

Earlier, on October 14, the 57th CCH Court in Bengaluru denied regular bail to Darshan who has been in jail since June 11 for his role in the alleged torture and murder of Renukaswamy. A plea challenging the lower court’s order is also pending before the Karnataka High Court, Bar & Bench reported. 

Darshan was initially lodged in Bengaluru Central Prison, and was later moved to Ballari after photos of him smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee in jail went viral on social media. 

Darshan, co-accused Pavithra Gowda and 15 others were arrested on June 11 on charges of kidnapping and brutally murdering Renukaswamy, who hailed from Chitradurga. Renukaswamy had allegedly sent derogatory and obscene messages to Pavithra Gowda.

On June 9, Renukaswamy was abducted from Chitradurga and brought to Bengaluru, where he was confined in a shed at Pattanagere and brutally assaulted allegedly by Darshan and his associates. After the victim was murdered,  his body was dumped in a drain at Sumanahalli. Among these 17 accused, bail has already been granted to three of the accused.

Also read: Fanpower, masculinity & crime: How Kannada superstar Darshan became prisoner no 6106