Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Oct 21: Judge of district chief and sessions court here, Venkatesh Naik T, who is hearing the sensational case relating to the murder of Bhaskar Shetty, an NRI entrepreneur, allegedly by his wife, son, and an astrologer, passed an order to recover Rs 10,000 from the salary payable to an official of Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and remit the same to the government. He passed this order as the official has been repeatedly skipping the hearing in the case.

The Supreme Court had, sometime back, granted conditional bail to Rajeshwari Shetty, wife of the late Bhaskar Shetty. Through an order passed on April 23 this year, the Supreme Court had ordered for granting bail to Rajeshwari after completing examination of all the 36 witnesses mentioned in the chargesheet within six months. As per this order, 35 witnesses were examined by the court and examination of DNA officer of FSL, Purushotham, was pending.Purushotham had absented from two successive hearings in the past, and thereafter bailable arrest warrant had been issued against him. 

Bhaskar Shetty

The special public prosecutor claimed in the court that the official has not been able to travel to Udupi from Bengaluru on account of nagging backache. But the judge was not satisfied by this explanation. He passed an order to recover fine of Rs 10,000 from Purushotham's salary, and fixed the next date of hearing as October 26.

As the six-month period prescribed by Supreme Court has now been transgressed, the court here will now have to take up with the apex court for extension of time.

Accused in the case, Rajeshwari Shetty, Navaneet Shetty, and Niranjan Bhat were produced in the court through video conferencing facility. Advocates, Arun Bangera and T N Poojary are representing the accused in the case.