A file image of Darshan appearing before the magistrate court in Bengaluru.
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: On a day when Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah denied being pressured in the high-profile homicide investigation involving Sandalwood actor Darshan, it has emerged that one minister made a desperate plea with a senior Cabinet colleague to bail out the beleaguered celebrity.
According to sources, this minister landed up at a senior minister's residence sometime last week to discuss the case involving Darshan.
The minister's passionate appeal seeking help for Darshan forced the senior minister to invite another senior minister into the discussion.
The three ministers are said to have exchanged notes on the case involving Darshan, which has dominated news headlines ever since the Bengaluru police arrested the 'Challenging Star' on June 11 in connection with the murder of Chitradurga-based Renuka Swamy.
The two senior ministers told their junior colleague that any interference in the police investigation to 'help' Darshan could backfire. "The senior minister who was invited into the discussion categorically said that it was impossible to interfere," it is learnt.
Upon hearing this, the junior minister is said to have gestured to fall at the feet of his senior. The two seniors finally schooled him on the dangers of tampering with legal procedures. "You will get caught if anything is done to influence the case," they are said to have told the junior minister. The discussion ended with the ministers deferring further discussions on the matter.
It is also said that one BJP MLA tried to take up the matter in favour of Darshan with the government, but to no avail.
On Wednesday, Siddaramaiah categorically ruled out coming under any pressure to influence the case. "No minister or MLA has exerted pressure on me. Even if someone does, I'll not listen," Siddaramaiah said. "We will do only what the law says. The police have been given full freedom. They've been asked to follow the law," he added.
The buzz in Congress circles is that investigators took the top political leadership into confidence by producing before them whatever evidence was available in the case involving Darshan, making any interference counterproductive.