Sexual assault video case: Second lookout notice issued against JD(S) leader HD Revanna, son Prajwal
Bengaluru (Karnataka), May 4: Karnataka’s Home Minister Gangadharaiah Parameshwara announced on Saturday that a second lookout notice had been issued against JD(S) MLA HD Revanna and his son, Prajwal Revanna, amidst the ongoing investigation into the alleged sexual assault video case.
“We have issued lookout notices against both HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna. We had issued a lookout notice to HD Revanna as he may plan to go abroad. But the second notice was given on Friday. They have time until this evening to reply to the notices,” said Karnataka’s Home Minister during a media briefing.
Parameshwara further mentioned that Revanna has applied for bail in the Mysore kidnapping case, where one person has already been arrested.
The first lookout notice was issued against HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna after they requested additional time to appear before the investigation team.
Earlier, on Thursday, the Karnataka Home Minister had informed the media about the lookout notice issued against the father-son duo in the alleged sexual assault video case.
Meanwhile, HD Revanna has been implicated in a kidnapping case related to the obscene video allegations. The complaint was lodged by the son of a woman who was purportedly “abducted and sexually abused.”
According to the complaint filed with KR Nagar police in Mysuru, the woman had worked as a housemaid at HD Revanna’s residence for six years before returning to her village, where she worked as a daily wage labourer.
The son discovered a video allegedly depicting his mother being sexually abused by incumbent MP and Hassan Lok Sabha candidate Prajwal Revanna. Following the revelation of the video, the woman went missing, prompting her son to file a kidnapping complaint against HD Revanna and Babanna on Thursday evening.
The Holenarsipura MLA and his accomplices were booked under Sections 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 365 (kidnapping with intent to cause harm), and 34 (common intention) of the IPC. The FIR, registered by KR Nagar police, lists HD Revanna as accused number one and another individual identified as Babanna as accused number two.
The FIR was filed hours before the anticipatory bail plea of HD Revanna was scheduled for hearing in the Special Court for People’s Representatives in Bengaluru on Friday. Revanna had skipped the summons to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on May 2 for questioning.
HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna, the sitting MP and candidate from the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency, are currently under investigation by a Special Investigative Team (SIT) formed by the Karnataka government. The investigation follows allegations of sexual harassment and criminal intimidation lodged by a woman who had previously worked in their household.
Revanna was booked in an alleged sexual harassment case on April 28, based on a complaint filed with Holenarasipura Town police. The case was registered under sections 354A, 354D, 506, and 509 of the IPC, on charges of sexual harassment, intimidation, and outraging the dignity of a woman. The victim claimed that both Prajwal Revanna and HD Revanna had sexually assaulted her.
In response to these developments, the Ministry of External Affairs stated on Thursday that Prajwal Revanna had traveled to Germany on a diplomatic passport without seeking political clearance from the MEA. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal clarified that no political clearance was sought or issued for Prajwal’s travel to any other country.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Union Government to cancel Prajwal’s diplomatic passport and facilitate his return through diplomatic and police channels.