The under-trial prisoner (UTP) number '6106' assigned to Kannada actor Darshan, has been trending on social media following the actor's arrest last month for his alleged involvement in the murder of a youth from Chitradurga in Karnataka. The disturbing trend was started by the actor's fans.
While some have his prison number tattooed on their bodies, new car owners are opting for the number for their vehicles. One couple went to the extent of conducting their newborn son's photoshoot in prison clothes bearing the number. The photo of the baby, with a hand-written slip 'Jai D. Boss' pasted next to it -- an apparent reference to Darshan -- was shared by an Instagram user.
The Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) has suo moto taken cognisance of the incident and has instructed the police department to trace the whereabouts of the parents. Commission members, as per reports, were concerned that the photoshoot involving handcuffs and prison numbers was a clear case of violation of the Juvenile Justice Act.
In a letter to the Cyber Crime Division of the Criminal Investigation Department, the KSCPCR Chairperson K Naganna Gowda also said action should be taken against those responsible for sharing the photographs. "We don't even call children as accused or criminals even when they do something wrong unknowingly. We call them 'children involved in legal fight'. Such effects should not befall children, Gowda said in his letter. Instead of providing a good atmosphere for children, we should not thrust our love or blind love for someone on them, he said.