Bengaluru: Actor Darshan’s return to jail will be far from a star-studded affair. After the Supreme Court tore into his “misleading” medical grounds for bail and warned against pampered treatment, prison life for the celebrity is set to be stripped of all luxuries.The Supreme Court bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, while ordering Darshan’s immediate arrest, warned the state machinery against extending any special treatment to him. “This judgment contains a very strong message that justice delivery system at any level should ensure, at any cost, that the rule of law is maintained. No man is above the law, no one is below it. Nor do we ask permission when we ask him to obey it. Obedience to the law is demanded as a right and not asked as a favour. The need of the hour is to maintain the law at all times. The day we come to know that accused persons are provided special or five-star treatment, the first step in the process will be to place the jail superintendent under suspension and including all officials involved in misconduct,” the SC bench ruled.Meanwhile, the Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara in Bengaluru and the Ballari jail, where Darshan was housed earlier, were put on high alert. Instructions to the jail staff have been clear: No VIP perks and special comforts to any prisoner, rules have to be applied to every inmate without any discrimination on the basis of wealth or celebrity status.Adding to the certainty of a no-nonsense approach is the man currently heading the state’s prison system — additional director general of police (Prisons) B Dayananda, the same officer who, as Bengaluru police commissioner, stood firm against political pressure when Darshan was arrested in connection with the murder.
