Prajwal Revanna ‘obscene’ video case: HD Kumaraswamy says Congress trying to destroy his family image

HUBBALLI : Janata Dal (Secular) and former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy alleged on Tuesday that Congress party was manipulating facts to destroy the image of his family amid the controversy over the ‘obscene’ video case against his nephew and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.

On being asked if Revanna will be expelled from the JD(S) Kumaraswamy said, “…We are not going to protect him, we will take severe action but the government’s responsibility is more”.

He further said more information will be provided after Core Committee meeting of the JD(S).

Kumaraswamy said that his party and the family are not responsible in any capacity for the actions undertaken by Revanna, who is the grandson of former Prime Minister and JD(S) patriarch Deve Gowda.

“This is the manipulation of Congress to destroy the image of our family. What is the role of Dewegowda Ji or me? We are not responsible for all those things. This is the individual issue of Prajwal Revanna. I am not in contact with him (Prajwal Revanna). It is the responsibility of the government to bring him before the law. Morally we have decided to make some decisions,” Kumaraswamy told reporters.

Kumaraswamy further said that he is not seeking any protection for Prajwal Revanna but it is for the Karnataka government to bring the facts and present truth into the issue.

#WATCH | On 'obscene videos' case involving JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna, former Karnataka CM and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy says, "…We are not going to protect him, we will take severe action but the government's responsibility is more. Not only as an uncle but as a common man of… pic.twitter.com/Ejq6N1xsLM

— ANI (@ANI) April 30, 2024

“We are not going to take any protection, we will take severe action but the government’s responsibility is more. Not only as an uncle but as a common man of the country we have to move further. This is a shameful issue, I am not protecting any person. We have fought against these kinds of illegal things. This is a serious issue. Who is running the government, they have to expose the real picture and the ground reality has to be exposed by the government and not me,” Kumaraswamy said.

Prajwal Revanna was booked in an alleged sexual harassment case on April 28 following complaints by his former housekeeper. The case has been registered under sections 354A, 354D, 506, and 509 of the IPC on charges of sexual harassment, intimidation and outraging the dignity of a woman.

As per the complaint, the victim has claimed that both Prajwal Revanna and his father HD Revanna had sexually assaulted her. The complainant further claimed that when Revanna’s wife was not at home, he touched her inappropriately and used to sexually assault her.

The Karnataka government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged obscene video case against MP Revanna. The SIT, headed by IPS officer Vijay Kumar Singh, and including DG CID Suman D Pennekar and IPS officer Seema Latkar have started the investigation in the case.

Prajwal Revanna is the candidate of the BJP-JD(S) alliance in Hassan in Karnataka which went to the polls on April 26 in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

Meanwhile, National Commission for Women has taken suo motu cognizance in Prajwal Revanna case and has asked the Karnataka Director General of Police to submit a detailed report within three days on the issue.

“The National Commission for Women has come across multiple media reports indicating that several video clips of sexual nature, allegedly involving Prajwal Revanna sitting MP for Lok Sabha from Hassan constituency sexually abusing hundreds of women were circulated on social media in recent days,” the NCW said in its notice.

“The Commission strongly condemns the incident and is deeply disturbed by its occurrence. Such events not only endanger women’s safety but also foster a culture of disrespect and violence against them. We urge prompt and decisive action from the concerned Police Authority to swiftly apprehend the accused, who has fled the country. A detailed report outlining the measures must be submitted within three days,” the notice issued by the women panel read. (ANI)