Bengaluru Real Estate Murder: Special Court Denies Bail to Actor-Producer Anil Kumar

A special court in Bengaluru has denied the bail application of actor-producer Anil Kumar, who stands accused of supplying the SUV used in the real estate-linked murder of Bikla Shiva. The court rejected his plea on December 8, citing prima facie evidence of his active involvement in the crime.

Anil Kumar M, also known as Anil R D, is a 39-year-old small-time film producer and actor. He was arrested by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of the Karnataka Police on November 10 in connection with the murder of real estate operative V G Shivaprakash, alias Bikla Shiva, who was 44 years old. Anil had sought bail, claiming that he had been questioned and cleared by the Bengaluru police earlier.

According to the allegations, Anil supplied a 2011 model white Scorpio SUV, with the registration number KA 53 P 7193 and the words 'Army' inscribed on it. This vehicle was used to transport the assailants who carried out the murder of Bikla Shiva on a busy Bengaluru street. The police seized the vehicle after the murder and traced it back to a person identified as Reddappa M, who had reportedly sold the car to a second-hand buyer.

Anil was named as the fourth accused in the First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Bharathinagar police. The FIR also named Byrathi Basavaraj, 63, the BJP’s K R Pura MLA; local gangster Jaga, alias Jagadish P, 45; and his associates. The prosecutor for the CID informed the court that Anil had assisted the main accused in purchasing the Scorpio used during the murder and was seen in the company of some of the key accused a day before the murder.

The court was informed that the accused had a criminal background and was allegedly involved in real estate activities to earn illegal money. He was said to have actively participated in the company of other accused persons prior to the commission of the murder. Anil is also alleged to have fled to Tamil Nadu and deactivated his phone shortly after the murder.

The murder of realtor Bikla Shiva took place outside his house on a public street near the Halasuru Lake on the evening of July 15, 2025. The crime is believed to be linked to a property dispute dating back to February 2025 between two groups staking claims to a property in the Kithaganur area of East Bengaluru.

Jagadish P, alias Jaga, the gang leader, fled to Dubai soon after the murder. He was later nabbed in Jakarta by Interpol on the basis of a Blue Corner Notice issued at the instance of the Karnataka CID police and was brought back to India, where he was arrested on August 26. The CID has invoked the stringent Karnataka Control of Organised Crime Act, 2000, in connection with the Bikla Shiva murder.

On November 10, the CID arrested Anil as well as realtor, advocate, and film producer A G Ajeeth Kumar, 48, in connection with the murder. A total of 20 people have been arrested in the case so far. While Ajeeth was released on a personal bond the same day, Anil remains in judicial custody.

The key accused, Jagadish and Ajeeth, are reportedly closely associated with MLA Byrathi Basavaraj, who has been protected from arrest by an August 12 order of the Karnataka High Court, which directed the police not to take 'coercive action' against the legislator.