Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (MS)

Udupi, Jun 24: Niranjan Bhat, one of the accused in the NRI entrepreneur Bhaskar Shetty murder case, which created sensation in the coastal region, four years ago, was granted conditional interim bail by the district court here.

Niranjan Bhat is the third accused in the case and was languishing in prison for the last four years. His father Srinivas Bhat had died two days ago. Though his father and driver Raghavendra were also arrested in the case on the accusation of destruction of evidence, they were released within a month.

Niranjan Bhat (left) and Bhaskar Shetty

Srinivas Bhat (65), father of accused Niranjan Bhat, who was mentally upset due to the inquiries related to the case and also of other illness, passed away. Niranjan Bhat's lawyer had appealed to the court to grant bail to the accused in order to carry out the after death religious rituals of his deceased father.

The district court, which heard the arguments of the lawyer, granted conditional bail till July 7 on furnishing a bond of Rs five lac. It also directed the accused to report to the court on or before July 7 to be taken into judicial custody.

The main and first accused in the case Rajeshwari Shetty, wife of the deceased Bhaskar Shetty is already out on bail. The second accused and son of deceased, Navneet Shetty is still in prison.

Bhaskar Shetty, who had pharmacies and hotels in Udupi and Dubai, was reportedly murdered on July 28, 2016. He was killed at his house in Indrali and later his body was taken to Belman. It is alleged that accused Niranjan Bhat, who is also an astrologer by profession, had put the body of deceased Bhaskar Shetty in the pit used for Homa rituals and burnt it.

Deceased Bhaskar Shetty's mother had filed a missing complaint with Udupi police about her son. The clue given by mother of the deceased about the arguments and misunderstandings that the couple had over property had made the police to trace the accused easily and arrest them and make a breakthrough in the sensational murder case.