Mysuru:

Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy on Wednesday once again appealed to his nephew and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna, who is facing charges of sexually abusing women, to return from abroad and face investigation.

The former chief minister said there are no differences between his party and its alliance partner, the BJP, over the allegations against Prajwal Revanna. “This case has nothing to do with the alliance,” he said.

Mr Revanna is the grandson of JDS patriarch and former PM HD Deve Gowda and is the NDA’s candidate from the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency.

The MP reportedly left for Germany on April 27, a day after the Hassan segment went to polls, and is still at large.

A ‘Blue Corner Notice’ seeking information on his whereabouts has already been issued by the Interpol, following a request by the SIT via the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

A Special Court for Elected Representatives issued an arrest warrant on Saturday against Prajwal Revanna, following an application moved by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the state government to probe the serial sex abuse charges against the MP.

“When he (Mr Revanna) was in Karnataka, he never came to me, now that he is somewhere abroad will he come to my contact?” Mr Kumaraswamy told reporters here in response to a question whether he was making any attempts to find Mr Revanna and bring him back using his sources.

Admitting that the delay in Mr Revanna’s return has caused damage to his party and the family’s reputation, the JDS state President said, “I have openly appealed to him — if you have respect for the party, its karyakartas, and Deve Gowda come back from wherever you are. Come back first and cooperate with the SIT’s probe….If you have not done anything wrong come and prove, if you have committed wrong then bow down and face the punishment.”

“Following my appeal, I’m hopeful that he (Mr Revanna) will come back…. Don’t take advice from any advocates on this matter. To save his morality he has to come back from wherever he is, this is my demand,” he added.

To another query, he said Mr Revanna was neither in touch with his father and MLA H D Revanna nor with anyone.

“Where will I go search for him? If I go abroad, they will say I have gone to save Prajwal… he is not in contact with anyone, with the advice of some advocates all these things have happened. In case, I had come to know about him leaving for abroad on April 27, I would have stopped him,” he said.

“Prajwal had sought a week’s time to appear before SIT, but it was denied and another rape case was filed against him. With all this he might be afraid (to come back),” he said.

Reacting to reports that some businessman was helping Mr Revanna, Mr Kumaraswamy said, “I’m not aware of it. No businessman comes to me, only people wanting to share their difficulties come to me.” He also alleged that the Congress government in the state has planned to finish off the Deve Gowda family politically, with such cases.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Former PM and JD(S) president H.D. Deve Gowda is celebrating his birthday on May 18, 2024.
| Photo Credit: File photo

Former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda, who is celebrating his 91st birthday on May 18, said while all possible action should be taken against his grandson and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna as per the law of the land, he alleged that the cases against his son and Holenarasipura MLA H. D. Revanna were ‘created’ to arrest him. 

This is the first comment by the Janata Dal (Secular) supremo on the sex abuse allegations against his grandson and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna. 

Mr. Deve Gowda had not stepped out of his Padmanabhanagar residence in Bengaluru since April 27 when Prajwal Revanna left the country for Germany. The last time, the former PM was seen in public was when he cast his vote, along with his wife, in his village Paduvalahippe, Holenarasipura, Hassan district of Karnataka, on April 26.

He emerged out of his Padmanabhanagar residence in Bengaluru on May 18 morning to visit a temple on his birthday and spoke to waiting mediapersons outside his house.

Mr. Revanna was arrested in the abduction case from the same house on May 4, and returned to it after being released on bail on May 14. 

“H. D. Kumaraswamy has already spoken at length on behalf of our entire family and the party on the ongoing issue pertaining to Prajwal Revanna and H. D. Revanna. As Mr. Kumaraswamy has said, it is the government’s responsibility to take all possible action against Prajwal Revanna under the ambit of the law of the land. We have no objection whatsoever to this. But, the people of the State have also realised by now that the cases against H. D. Revanna were created to target him. He has already got bail in one case and the judgment on a bail petition in another case is expected on May 20,” Mr. Deve Gowda said. 

However, echoing Mr. Kumaraswamy’s line of attack against the State Government and Congress leader D. K. Shivakumar, Mr. Deve Gowda said, “Many people are involved in this case. I don’t want to take anyone’s name at this time. All of those involved should be brought to book, and all women who have been victimised should be provided justice.” 

New Delhi:

Given the public outcry and mass mobilisation that we have seen over, at least, some high profile cases of sexual assault on women, it needs to be asked if the reaction to the Prajwal Revanna sexual crimes, including rape, case has been muted, socially and politically.

Is it being seen more in the realm of a political exchange and less as what it should be – a case of multiple rapes and sexual assaults. Yes, no one is guilty till proven so in a court of law and politics is filled with wild allegations, but here there are videos and statements by victims against the JDS Hassan member of parliament and, in a bulldozer justice era, the least that needs to be ensured is he is questioned by authorities and faces due process.

A group of over 100 intellectuals in Karnataka wrote a petition to the Chief Minister seeking his immediate arrest. The authors listed a few demands – from providing a safe environment for the witnesses, seeking immediate arrest of the driver of Prajwal (who is believed to have approached some political leaders with the pen drive containing the horrific and sleazy Prajwal videos ), demanding cases to be booked against family member as accomplices and requesting interrogation of politicians, intelligence and police officials who may have colluded to help Prajwal leave the country before a case was registered on the 28th of April.

There are serious moral questions to the JDS on why it hasn’t forced Prajwal back or even take political action to force him back. It seems more interested in attacking the Congress for leaking the videos, who leaked the videos by itself is an important matter of investigations but the first focus is the getting their MP before the law. There are questions over the BJP trying to distance itself from the case and not aggressively forcing it’s ally the JDS to act on the case. Also, if the centre should be more aggressive in this case.  

There are also questions to the Congress which rules the State and investigators if they are treating this case as severely as they should. Or is the Congress looking at this with a post poll political calculus in mind.

This really needs rise above a Congress Vs JDS-BJP exchange or a Centre versus State issue. There are crucial questions over whether the investigators, prosecutors and courts have been aggressive enough in this case.

For instance, twenty days on we are still only at a blue-collar notice. There are questions over whether his passport ought to have been cancelled by now or if the prosecutors should have at least moved the court for an order to impound or cancel his passport or other stern actions to force him back. This is not just about procedural, legal action but also the optics and public pressure in the case. 

Given that Prajwal is not in India, the CBI becomes the nodal agency in sending requests to the interpol to have notices issued. From a pedestrian point of view, a blue corner notice is to say that there is a look out for a person, but a red corner notice is declaring him or her a proclaimed offender, technically making him a criminal wherever he or she is. There is no clarity on what steps have been taken to move towards such a notice.

When there are serious charges like rape involved, with punishment of over 7 years, there is no arrest warrant required. The accused could face direct arrest anywhere in India. Investigators say the process of collection of evidence is still in progress to build the case for a red corner notice. But there are multiple statements from victims that have been recorded before the magistrate under section 164 of the CRPC. In rape and sexual assault cases, even an uncorroborated statement by a victim has significant evidentiary value and in this case there is also alleged videographic evidence.

Certainly, all sides are beginning to seem like they lack the will to force Prajwal back to even merely face investigations.

Prajwal’s father H D Revanna was arrested in a case of abduction and spent six days in jail before being released on bail on Tuesday. He faces another case of molestation as well, where he has been granted interim bail and final order is expected on 24th. There are concerns as we move further away in time that the focus on the case, and hence the case itself, would only get weaker.

Meanwhile, the JDS has demanded a CBI probe into the case. Prajwal clearly seems to be biding time till the election results are out. While it shouldn’t matter who wins or loses, the fear is it will.

It is a dangerous precedent if a sitting MP is being allowed to dodge investigators in a case of rape and irrespective of the political mud-slinging, a clear, transparent and aggressive investigation is the least that needs to be ensured.

He doesn’t have to be vilified or portrayed as guilty till the due process is followed, but ensuring the due process is followed is a responsibility of the State, the Centre, the Congress, BJP, JDS, media and civil society.  

Bengaluru:

Janata Dal (Secular) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday alleged that there was a “big whale” behind the leaking of explicit videos of women being sexually abused allegedly by his nephew and party MP from Hassan, Prajwal Revanna.

Mr Kumaraswamy’s swipe was apparently against Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.

Talking to reporters about the Prajwal Revanna case, the JDS second-in-command said an MLA from Mandya had said ‘large whales’ were behind releasing the video.

Asked to explain who the ‘big whale’ is, Mr Kumaraswamy said, “Who else is it? Today an MLA from Mandya spoke about a ‘big whale’. Whatever the ‘big whale’ is saying, the same is followed by the ‘small whales’.”

He said that, after listening to the arguments of the lawyers, it appears prima facie that the arrest of MLA H D Revanna, Mr Kumaraswamy’s brother, was “politics of hate”.

The government initiated action against Mr Revanna to spoil the reputation of former Prime Minister Deve Gowda, the former chief minister alleged.

He asked how anyone would catch the ‘big whale’ when he is in government.

Reacting to Mr Kumaraswamy’s remarks, Mr Shivakumar said, “Let him (Mr Kumaraswamy) arrest and swallow the ‘big whale’. I am neither director nor producer. I am only an exhibitor, theatre exhibitor.”

On Mr Kumaraswamy’s charges that Mr Revanna was arrested to defame Deve Gowda, the deputy chief minister said, “Not at all. See, I too feel sorry for him (Mr Revanna). I too feel that such things should not happen. It’s such a big family. Let them think whatever they want but I don’t wish anything bad for anyone and I don’t need it.”

Mr Shivakumar, who is also Congress Karnataka unit president, said he believed in the law of nature and he too had suffered a lot.

“I too faced political conspiracy. I know how strong and full of self-confidence I am. That’s the reason that god protected me,” he said.

Mr Revanna, who is the elder son of JDS patriarch and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, was arrested along with his confidant Sathish Babanna for allegedly abducting a woman on April 29.

The case was registered on a complaint filed by the woman’s son, who alleged that his mother was sexually abused by Mr Revanna’s son and JDS MP Prajwal Revanna.

The woman was allegedly abducted to prevent her from testifying against the younger Mr Revanna, police sources said.

The explicit videos of alleged sexual abuse by Prajwal Revanna had been making the rounds on social media, and the government formed the SIT on April 28 to probe the case after the Karnataka State Commission for Women wrote a letter to the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah seeking an investigation into it.

The 33-year-old, who was the NDA candidate in the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency, reportedly left the country on April 27, a day after the elections, and has skipped the SIT summons to appear before it.

Interpol has issued a Blue Corner Notice against the “absconding” MP, who is facing sexual abuse charges.

A Blue Corner Notice is issued to collect information from member countries about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a crime.

HD Revanna was released on bail on Tuesday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

BJP leader G Devaraje Gowda was late Friday taken into custody in connection with a sexual assault case. He was taken into custody near Hiriyur while he was traveling from Bengaluru toward Chitradurga, police said.

A case of sexual harassment was registered against Devaraje Gowda on a complaint by a 36-year-old woman, who alleged that he molested her on the pretext of helping her sell her property.

Gowda, who contested the 2023 Karnataka assembly election against Prajwal’s father and Holenarasipura MLA HD Revanna, is also accused of leaking videos of JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna’s alleged sexual abuse of several women. He, however, has blamed the Congress for leaking the videos.

Gowda had also alerted the BJP leadership last year about Prajwal Revanna’s alleged sexual abuse and asked the party not to give a Lok Sabha ticket to the JD(S) leader from Hassan. The BJP, which formed an alliance with the JD(S) last year, however, decided to field Prajwal from Hassan.

The sex scandal had come to the fore a day after the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency went to the polls on April 26. Videos began doing the rounds showing multiple women being sexually assaulted. The 33-year-old politician can also allegedly be seen sexually abusing women in some of the videos. 

Prajwal Revanna, who is the grandson of former prime minister and JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda, left for Germany the day the videos emerged, and was later suspended by the JD(S). A blue corner notice, which asks Interpol member states to help locate a person, has been issued against him.

Three FIRs, including charges of rape, molestation, intimidation, blackmailing, and threatening, have been registered against him.

His father, HD Revanna, is currently in jail on charges of kidnapping a woman, a mother of three.

Bengaluru:

Former Prime Minister and JD(S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda’s grandson Prajwal Revanna, an accused in the alleged sex video scandal, will be asked to return to India by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), said Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Monday.

Speaking to media persons, Mr Parameshwara said that an SIT probe would be complete soon and a report is submitted within 10 to 15 days in such cases.

“In this case, the directions have been given on the time frame to the investigation officers. If not for the time frame, the probe will be conducted for years,” he added.

The Home Minister said that an investigation would be conducted and action would be initiated against all the accused mentioned by the victims in the complaint.

“Based on the complaint to the Karnataka State Commission for Women, the state government has formed the SIT led by senior IPS officer B.K. Singh. Two women Superintendents of Police are also part of the team,” he added.

“The state government will not interfere in the probe, it is left to the probe agency to take it forward. The Investigating Officers will take the pen drives containing alleged sex videos which will be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for verification. The evidence needed to be collected.”

“According to official information, the main accused Prajwal Revanna had travelled to a foreign country, he will be called back to India by the SIT,” Mr Parameshwara said.

The investigation would be conducted against JD(S) MLA H.D. Revanna against whom the complaint of sexual harassment is lodged separately.

Once the SIT gives a report, the action would be initiated against the accused persons, the Home Minister added.

The SIT officers will probe the matter of the possibility of many more pen drives containing sex videos being prevented from being circulated, Mr Parameshwara said.

The state government is ready to provide security to the complainants and victims if there is a necessity, he added.

Meanwhile, the mother-in-law of one of the victims has said that her daughter-in-law was quiet for five years and lodged a complaint of sexual harassment now.

“Bhavani madam (Prajwal Revanna’s mother) has helped us and she stood with our family. She (daughter-in-law) was taken out forcefully and a complaint was lodged. It is being done to bring disrepute to the Deve Gowda family. This is a false complaint,” she added.

Meanwhile, the SIT has expedited the probe and managed to locate five victims and received information from them after bringing them to the SIT office, sources said.

The victims included government officers and political leaders.

The victims have recorded their statements in front of Superintendent of Police Seema Latkar, sources added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)