The Karnataka police are “screening” key members of murder-accused actor Darshan's fan clubs across the state and their activities. The groups are suspected to have harboured anti-social elements amongst their ranks, a top police source told the press.
Actor Darshan has been a guardian angel to these criminal elements hidden behind the veil of the fan groups, the police claimed. Police are also contemplating opening a rowdy sheet against the Sandalwood star as he allegedly has contacts with rowdies in different parts of Karnataka who operated through his fan clubs. “With his money power and clout, Darshan was protecting them,” a police officer told the news agency PTI.
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According to police, fan club members were paid handsome amounts by not just Darshan but the producers, directors and financiers of his movies ahead of release. These groups were entrusted to create a favourable box-office atmosphere whenever his movies came out.
To get a lucrative share in the income generated from Darshan movies, fan clubs would strive for the success of his films, the sources said, adding, often there would be competition amongst them in various districts.
“It has also been observed that these fan club members would clash with the fan club members of other actors whenever Darshan movies were released simultaneously with the ‘rival actor’,” the sources said.
Renukaswamy, a fan of Darshan, was abducted from his hometown of Chitradurga by a key club member and his associates in the district and brought to Bengaluru where he was tortured and murdered. The wife of the victim had earlier claimed that it was a district officebearers of the Darshan fan club that came and took him away.
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Renukaswamy, a 33-year-old auto driver, reportedly sent obscene messages to Pavithra Gowda, for souring Darshan's relationship with his wife. Gowda tipped off Darshan, who hired members of one of his fan clubs to track down and kidnap Renukaswamy.
His body was found in Bengaluru on June nine.
