Mysuru hotel waiter assault case: Darshan challenges Indrajit to produce proof

Team Udayavani, Jul 17, 2021, 7:33 PM IST

Bengaluru: The row over Sandalwood actor Darshan allegedly assaulting a waiter in Mysuru has seen many twists and turns over the past few days. Now the challenging star has challenged film director Indrajit Lankesh to produce solid proof.

Addressing pressperson here on Saturday, July 17 Darshan challenged Indrajit to produce proof against him.

Reacting to Darshan, Indrajit said, “There is no need to be offended, I have asked Darshan two questions let him answer it first. Lets not speak dirty.”

It started with Indrajit Lankesh alleging that the Darshan and his friends attacked a waiter of a hotel in Mysuru leaving him with serious eye injuries. The incident, according to Indrajit, took place four months back.

Lankesh filed an appeal letter with Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday, July 14, requesting an investigation into this matter.

As per the complaint, Indrajit Lankesh claimed that the assaulted waiter was given Rs 50,000 as a settlement to avoid escalation of the issue.

He alleged that the CCTV footage of the hotel was deleted to clear evidence of the incident. “About four months back, Darshan and his friends Rakesh and Harsha Melanta, hit a Dalit supplier in Sandesh Prince hotel following a major fight. I have proof based on which I’ve requested the Home Minister to take action,” he said while addressing the media.

Additionally, Lankesh said that the police also ignored the incident when it took place.

In a major twist to the incident, the hotel waiter and alleged victim of assault appeared before the police and told them that he was a Brahmin, not a Dalit. He also denied that he was not assaulted by actor Darshan.

He told the police that he had known Darshan for many years and would be addressed affectionately by the actor whenever he visited the hotel. The police recorded his statement as well as that of a trainee waiter from Bihari named Sameer.

Meanwhile, an audio clip containing a purported conversation between Indrajit Lankesh and Sandesh, owner of Hotel Sandesh The Prince in Mysuru, went viral on Friday, july 16.

In the audio, Sandesh says that Darshan assaulted waiter Gangadhar. The same voice says Darshan’s friends are bad people and came with a gang of 15-20 friends and assaulted the waiter.

“I myself had gone to the hotel and scolded the gang for assaulting the waiter. Harsha fell at my feet and apologized,” the purported voice of Sandesh says in the audio clip.

The voice continues, “I told Darshan that the friends who surround him are not people of good character.”

The conversation also pointed to how Darshan blackmailed film producer Umapathy. The voice advises Darshan to mend his ways.

This incident accusing Darshan and his friends comes days after the actor called for a probe into a Rs 25 crore fraud case concerning him.

He had filed a complaint that his documents had been forged to obtain a loan. A woman and two men have been booked for cheating and extortion, following an ongoing investigation.