Karnataka HC: Victim's mother not hostile, no cross-examination needed in Darshan case

The High Court of Karnataka has upheld a trial court's decision that the mother of Renukaswamy, the man whose murder actor Darshan and others are accused of, need not be cross-examined by the prosecution. The court observed that her answers during defence questioning did not show hostility towards the prosecution's case.

Justice M. Nagaprasanna, hearing a petition filed by the prosecution, rejected the request to cross-examine the deceased's mother under Section 154 of the Indian Evidence Act. This section allows a party to ask questions to its own witness if the witness turns hostile, but the court found no such grounds.

The High Court noted that a stray statement or an unguarded answer cannot be treated as hostility. It said, “A cumulative consideration of the deposition of PW-1, her examination-in-chief, and cross-examination, and the law declared by the apex court, no circumstance emerges which could compel, or even warrant, exercise of discretion under Section 154.”

The court also pointed out that the mother had neither turned her back on the prosecution nor completely departed from her earlier statements. It said, “She has not disowned the substratum of the prosecution case. There is no demonstrable transfer of loyalty from the prosecution to the defence.”

The trial court had earlier in January this year stated that the mother's answers were not manifestly antipathetic to the prosecution case, and hence permission to cross-examine her was not necessary.

Additionally, the High Court noted that if the prosecution found any ambiguity or inconsistency in the witness's testimony after the defence cross-examined her, it could have used re-examination to clarify matters. The prosecution, however, chose not to do so.

“Having allowed that statutory opportunity to pass, the prosecution cannot seek to achieve, through the extraordinary route of Section 154, what could appropriately have been clarified in re-examination,” the court said. It added that Section 154 cannot become a procedural second innings for a party that was not satisfied with its own witness's testimony.

The case relates to the murder of Renukaswamy, whose body was found in June 2024. Actor Darshan and several others are facing trial. The trial is ongoing, and the court's order ensures the trial will proceed without the prosecution cross-examining the victim's mother.