Bengaluru Court Rejects Actor Darshan’s Plea for In-Person Appearance in Murder Case

A city civil and sessions court in Bengaluru on Monday rejected an application filed by actor Darshan seeking permission to appear in person in connection with the Renukaswamy murder case. The court directed the actor to continue appearing before the bench through video conference.

Darshan had submitted the plea citing a lack of proper facilities and difficulties in communicating with his legal counsel while attending the court proceedings remotely via video conference.

Appearing for Darshan, senior advocate Hashmath Pasha argued that allowing the actor to appear physically in the courtroom would help him consult his advocates and receive instructions during the recording of evidence. Pasha stated that there is currently no proper headphone facility available for video conferences, which hampers effective communication between the accused and his counsel.

Special Public Prosecutor Prasanna Kumar opposed the application, submitting that the law permits accused persons to participate in proceedings through video conferencing. The prosecutor argued that physically producing Darshan in the courtroom could disrupt proceedings and maintained that his physical presence was not necessary.

Following the submissions, the court rejected the plea for physical attendance and directed its technical wing to make available all necessary facilities to ensure the accused can communicate privately with his lawyers during virtual hearings.