Chargesheet in public domain will not impact proceedings: K'taka minister

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Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Tuesday said details of the chargesheet in the Renukaswamy murder case, in which Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa and 16 others are accused, coming out in the public domain, will not have any impact on court proceedings.

He said based on the chargesheet submitted and evidence given by the police to the court concerned, the case will proceed further.

"No, they will go by the documents. Just because someone speaks something in the public domain, the court doesn't take it into cognisance. They will go by the merits of the case based on documents and evidence that are there," Parameshwara said, when asked if the chargesheet information coming out will have any influence on further probe.

Police last week submitted to the court a 3,991-page preliminary chargesheet in the case.

Responding to a question on objections regarding information from the chargesheet coming out and Darshan moving the court in this regard, the Minister said: "Once the chargesheet is submitted it is given to the opposite lawyers too, it is no more a secret document, it will come into public domain and cannot be stopped."

"I have heard that they have approached the court to restrain information from the chargesheet coming out, let's see what the court decides," the Minister said.

On allegations by some BJP leaders that details of the chargesheet are being divulged to divert attention from a site allotment scam allegedly involving the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara said they are independent cases.

"Now the Rameshwaram cafe blast case chargesheet has been filed by NIA, can similar allegations be made in connection with it? There is no such thing. They are handled independently. Media picks up issues based on their priority," he said.

Asked about National Investigation Agency (NIA) findings in its chargesheet that the terror attack on Rameshwaram Cafe in Brookefield here took place after the accused failed to execute an IED attack on the state BJP office in Malleswaram, Parameshwara said: "It is a case handled by NIA, we don't know what they have said in the chargesheet and what are its findings."

"They (NIA) have filed the chargesheet in that they have said that there was a plan to blast the BJP office; on other matters we don't have any briefing," he added.