2 weeks ago
With two new Fresh Information Reports (FIR) of rape and kidnapping, trouble seems to be mounting for Janata Dal Secular (JDS) MP Prajwal Revanna from Karnataka’s Hassan and his father HD Revanna. These FIRs are in addition to the first FIR of rape against Prajwal, filed on the basis of the complaint of a former Zilla Parishad (ZP) and JDS member, which led to the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Karnataka Police.
The SIT had on Thursday issued a notice under section 41(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), indicating that the arrest of Revanna and Prajwal was imminent.
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JD(S) is part of the BJP-led Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the state. Prajwal, 33, the grandson of JD(S) chief and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, is the incumbent MP from Hassan. His father, Revanna, is a former minister and current MLA of the JDS. His mother, Bhavani Revanna, was a member of the Hassan Zila Panchayat. His brother Suraj Revanna is an MLC. Prajwal’s uncle HD Kumaraswamy is a former Karnataka CM and JD(S) leader.
Revanna then moved the special court for elected representatives for anticipatory bail, but withdrew the petition after the prosecution pointed out that the allegations of sexual harassment, stalking, insulting modesty of women and criminal intimidation made against him were bailable offences.
Revanna also did not appear in court on Friday, as he could have been arrested by the SIT for not responding to the summons to appear before it within 24 hours.
NEW FIR 1: ‘COERCED TO HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP’
In the first of the two fresh FIRs, both Prajwal and Revanna have been booked based on a complaint of sexual harassment by a woman on April 28. In her complaint, the survivor has accused them of “coercing her to have a sexual relationship" with Prajwal.
Based on this complaint, the SIT invoked Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the Hassan MP. A lookout notice has also been issued against Prajwal, who has fled the country, after he failed to appear in front of the SIT.
NEW FIR 2: ‘MY MOTHER WAS RAPED, KIDNAPPED’
Another FIR alleges that Satish Babbana, a close aide of Revanna, allegedly kidnapped a former house help at the behest of the MLA twice.
Raju, her son and complainant, said that his mother was among the several victims seen in the alleged sex tapes released in pen drives. In the complaint letter, Raju alleged that Babanna, hailing from K R Nagar in Mysuru, came to their house earlier last month and forcibly took his mother to Holenarasipura in Hassan, claiming that Revanna and his wife Bhavani had summoned her. Babanna allegedly dropped his mother back on April 26. “He told my parents not to tell anything to the police. He threatened us that we would be booked in a case and told us to alert him if the police came by."
But Babanna returned on April 29, a few days before the Lok Sabha elections. “He told us that if my mother is caught by the police, a case would be registered and all of us would go to jail. He claimed that Revanna had told him to bring my mother along. He forced my mother into accompanying him on his bike," Raju’s complaint said.
The complainant said that he got to know later that a video of his mother being raped by Prajwal was doing the rounds. They told me that despite my mother pleading to be spared, Prajwal had raped her.
He claimed that his mother worked as a help at Revanna’s farmhouse for over six years. She later left her job at the house and returned to her hometown three years ago.
“Every attempt is being made to trace the elderly woman, who is considered to be ‘kidnapped’ so she wouldn’t testify against Prajwal, according to her son Raju," said Karnataka police.
THE ZP MEMBER’S FIR THAT LED TO THE SIT
The first FIR was filed on May 1, after a 44-year-old former ZP member and JDS member accused Prajwal of raping her multiple times over the past three years and videotaping the alleged acts.
The FIR was filed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) based on her statement. The woman claimed that she often had to meet the MP and MLA to get clearances for development works in her region. She alleged that in 2021, she had reached out to Prajwal, seeking his intervention to get hostel seats for a group of women college students at a college in Hassan. Claiming to be busy that day, Prajwal asked her to meet the next day, said the FIR.
“As per our discussion, the next day I visited the MP at his office and later at his MP quarters in Hassan. His staff instructed me to wait on the first floor of the MP residence as there were many visitors on the ground floor," the survivor stated.
“After speaking to many of the people who had been there, including women, I was the only one left in the room, and later, he called me inside. He pulled my hand and locked the door. When I asked him why he did so, he told me that nothing would happen to me and asked me to sit on the bed. He warned me not to go overboard, as his mother had missed getting a ticket because of him. He warned me of consequences and said that if I wanted my husband to grow in politics, I should listen to what he says," the survivor said in her complaint.
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The survivor alleged that Prajwal forced her to undress and lie down and warned her against shouting. She claimed that he said that if she did, he had a gun which he would use, and her husband and she would have to face dire consequences. She said that Prajwal raped her and recorded the alleged act on his mobile phone. “He threatened to leak the video if I spoke about the meeting and asked me to be there whenever he wanted," the survivor said, adding that the MP called her on video several times, raped her on multiple occasions and also demanded she strip naked on video calls.
Based on her complaint, an FIR was registered by the SIT under several sections of the IPC, including 376 (2) (n) (multiple rapes of a woman), 506 (criminal intimidation), 354 A (1) (physical contact, forced advances, and explicit overtures), 354 (B) (use of force or assault to force a woman to disrobe), and 354 C (voyeurism). It was also filed under the violation of privacy (66E) of the Information Technology Act.
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