May 06, 2024 02:19 AM IST
The Holenarasipur MLA, who was arrested by SIT on Saturday, was produced before a Bengaluru court, which remanded him to police custody till May 8.
Janata Dal (Secular) legislator HD Revanna was remanded in police custody for three days by a city court, and a ‘Blue Notice’ was issued against his son, parliamentarian Prajwal Revanna, on Sunday over abduction and sexual assault charges, people aware of the matter said.
The Holenarasipur MLA, who was arrested by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Saturday, was produced before a Bengaluru court, which remanded him to police custody till May 8, officials aware of the matter said.
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Revanna, former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda’s son, was taken into custody from the JD(S) chief’s Padmanabhanagar residence in Bengaluru. The SIT, constituted to probe the allegations of sexual abuse against the two JD(S) leaders, also rescued the abducted woman from the farmhouse of Revanna’s personal assistant in Mysuru a day earlier, officials familiar with the development said.
The MLA’s arrest capped nearly a week of controversy that erupted after pen drives with purported videos of Prajwal sexually assaulting multiple women came to the fore days before the constituency of Hassan, a family borough of the JD(S), went to the polls in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on April 26. Prajwal is the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate for the seat.
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Revanna was arrested in a case registered against him and his associate Sathish Babanna in Mysuru on Thursday night for allegedly abducting a woman, reportedly in her 60s. The FIR was filed on a complaint filed by the woman’s son after she went missing on April 28. The complainant alleged that Babanna, acting under directives from Revanna, abducted his mother.
Before being produced before the magistrate, Revanna claimed that there was no evidence of his involvement in the case.
“There is no evidence. It’s a big political conspiracy… A conspiracy was hatched against me,” he said to the media at the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital, where he was taken for a medical checkup.
Babanna has already been arrested in connection with the case. According to the complaint, one of the thousands of videos shows the woman pleading with Prajwal to spare her.
Blue Notice against Prajwal
Karnataka home minister Parameshwara on Sunday that a ‘Blue Notice’ has been issued against Prajwal and they were taking Interpol’s help to bring him back to India.
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A ‘Blue Notice’ is issued by the international police cooperation body to collect additional information from its member countries about a person’s identity, location, or activities in relation to a crime.
“Already Blue Corner notice has been issued. They will locate him wherever he is. Interpol will inform all the countries and locate him,” he said.
Prajwal possibly flew abroad on April 27, a day after the second phase of Lok Sabha polls. The SIT has issued a lookout notice against him.
SIT launches helpline
The SIT in the case has launched helpline — 6360938947 — for victims and informants who want to contact officials, an official statement said.
“Any victim and informant can call on the helpline seeking legal help, protection for their safety or any other help. The identity of those who call will be protected,” the statement said.
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Arun Dev is an Assistant Editor with the Karnataka bureau of Hindustan Times. A journalist for over 10 years, he has written extensively on crime and politics.
