Karnataka High Court refuses to pass interim order on Darshan plea for home cooked food, books

The Karnataka High Court on Friday refused to grant interim relief to Kannada actor Darsha Thoogudeepa, accused in the Renukaswamy murder case, in his plea to receive cooked food from home, bedding and some books to read while in jail..Justice SR Krishna Kumar said that Darshan should approach the magistrate court in Bengaluru first, and come to the High Court only if he was not satisfied.Darshan had said in his petition that Sections 30 and 32 of the Karnataka Prisons Act, which permit civil prisoners and undertrials to maintain themselves and can get access to food and bedding from outside, should be interpreted as absolute rights. In response to this, the judge said,“What you are asking for is that these rights under 30 and 32 be considered as absolute rights. Meaning that the word shall be interpreted such that the moment an undertrial asks for home food, he should immediately be granted that without getting into his conduct, eligibility etc. For that, I will have to hear the matter in detail because whatever I say will become the law. I can’t pass an interim order.".The Court also said that since factual aspects were involved in the present case, it was better that Darshan goes to the magistrate court first, just as how Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had approached the Rouse Avenue Court to ask for home cooked food, medication etc.The High Court accordingly directed Darshan to file an application seeking relief before the magistrate court by Saturday, and directed such court to decide on the actor’s application within a “fixed time frame.”.It also decided to keep Darshan’s petition pending so that the same can be heard if he fails to get relief from the magistrate court..In his petition, Darshan told the Court that the prison authorities at Parappana Agrahara Jail have illegally been denying him permission to receive cooked food, cutlery, bedding and books that his family has been sending for him.He further said that while it was his right as an undertrial prisoner to seek access to the food and clothes his family is willing to send for him, allowing him such facilities will also reduce the “burden on the State exchequer.”.The dead body of 33-year-old auto-driver Renukaswamy was found on June 9. It is alleged that he died owing to injuries sustained in an attack carried out on Darshan's instructions. The actor allegedly called upon his fans to accost Renukaswamy for making derogatory comments against his alleged partner, Pavithra Gowda, on social media.