Bangalore:Dec 27 (DHNS) : The prosecution’s case in the 2008 sensational murder of Kannada actor-realtor Vinod Kumar has fallen flat with all seven accused being acquitted by the Bangalore Rural District Principal Sessions Court here on Wednesday for want of evidence.

On the night of October 7, 2008, Kannada film producer Govardhan Murthy, his friend Vinod Kumar , a budding film actor and also a realtor, and another friend Shankar Reddy had gone to a farm house, L G Rose Heritage, on the International Airport Link Road at Bande Hosur. At a party there, a drunken brawl ensued among the four armed guards of Murthy following which one Tripathy fired three rounds. Reports had then indicated that hearing the melee, Murthy and the others came out.

Govardhan Murthy also got involved in the brawl. Alarmed by the turn of events, Vinod Kumar tried to separate the feuding men. According to the police, Murthy was alleged to have fired at Vinod Kumar twice at point blank range from a 7.7 mm pistol. Murthy, his employees and the guards had fled the scene while Shankar Reddy had rushed Vinod Kumar to a nearby hospital. However, he was declared brought dead, said reports then.

Murthy and five others were arrested a week later from Kerala where they were hiding, claimed the police.

However, the prosecution’s case has now fallen flat. Justice Ratnamala of the Bangalore Rural District Principal Sessions Court acquitted all the seven accused – Govardhan Murthy, Dinesh, Tripathy, Ganapathi, Naveen Kumar, Prabhakar and Srinivasa Murthy - for want of evidence. Noted criminal lawyer C H Hanumantharaya was the counsel for the accused.

Hanumantharaya told Deccan Herald that the prosecution had alleged that Govardhan Murthy killed Vinod Kumar in cold blood as the girl he wanted to marry was being married to Vinod Kumar. The match was fixed by the two families. However the defence argued that even after the alleged conflict over the girl, the two had been friends.