Amid the controversy over photos of jailed Kannada superstar Darshan, sources have said that he was provided with his choicest non-vegetarian dishes, liquor, bedding facilities and the freedom to meet his associates.
The actor is an accused in a kidnap and murder case and is lodged in the Central prison here. His photos of smoking cigarettes and having coffee went viral on Sunday. On Monday, an alleged recording of Darshan's video call also surfaced.
The 25-second duration recording shows Darshan's associate making a video call and talking to another person with earphones on. Darshan in his barrack appears on the screen and also speaks to the person on the other end.
After the video went viral, the authorities took note and stated that it would be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to ascertain whether it was genuine or made up.
Sources have revealed that for Darshan, the prison has been turned into a resort-type place. He is allowed to have non-vegetarian food whenever he wants. The non-vegetarian food, especially chicken and mutton biryani, is being supplied to Darshan and his gang from a famous hotel in the Bengaluru South area, sources stated.
Darshan is fond of non-vegetarian food, especially biryani. Along with biryani, he is also being provided with his choice of liquor. The actor is allowed to party inside the prison with notorious rowdies and has a blast of the time, according to sources.
Sources stated Darshan parties with rowdies Wilson Garden Naga, Backery Raghu, and his close associates Nagaraj and Raghu. Sources also revealed that jailed rowdy facing charges of murder Wilson Garden Naga and Pavan had made a deal with the jail officers.
Darshan is also allowed to have cigarettes and massages inside the prison. Sources further stated that it is impossible to get this kind of facility if not for the support of powerful ruling party politicians.
Sources further said that Darshan is being provided bedding facilities and the freedom to meet his associates, gang up in his barrack and have a ball of time inside the prison besides the nonvegetarian food and liquor.
Considering the seriousness of the matter, Home Minister G. Parameshwara is making a personal visit to the Central Jail, Bengaluru later in the day, the official statement from the state Home Department stated.
Interestingly, the City Central Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths conducted surprise raids on the Central Prison of Bengaluru last Saturday after getting a tip-off about the luxury treatment of Darshan. They also had information about the presence of weapons inside the prison. However, the CCB sleuths returned empty-handed as they did not seize any material from the prison.
Home Minister G. Parameshwara had ordered to carefully look into the CCTV footage of three days to find out about the shifting of boxes. So far, seven prison staff, including two jailers, have been suspended in the case of giving luxury treatment to Darshan.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has ordered shifting of Darshan and his gang members to different prisons across the state and sought a report from the Karnataka Police chief.
(With inputs from IANS)
