A Bengaluru court on Monday granted bail to Janata Dal (Secular) MLA and former Karnataka minister HD Revanna in connection with the alleged abduction of a woman in a sexual abuse case against his son and Lok Sabha MP Prajwal Revanna, Bar and Bench reported.
The police had arrested HD Revanna on May 4 on the complaint of a woman who claims to have been raped by Prajwal Revanna. He was arrested after a special court rejected his petition for anticipatory bail.
On Monday, Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat allowed the bail plea on the condition that HD Revanna executes a personal bond of Rs 5 lakh with two sureties, reported Bar and Bench.
According to the bail conditions, HD Revanna should not threaten the prosecution witnesses or the complainant and victim.
The Janata Dal (Secular) leader has been asked to furnish his passport to the court and not leave the state without permission from it. He has also been asked not to enter KR Nagar Taluk or the permanent place of residence of the complainant directly or indirectly till further orders.
The legislator has been asked to appear before the investigating officer on every second Sunday of the month and whenever called for inquiry otherwise. HD Revanna has also been asked to mark his attendance with the officer for a period of six months or till the filing of the chargesheet.
The sexual abuse case
On April 27, the Congress government in Karnataka had formed a Special Investigation Team to probe allegations of sexual abuse against Prajwal Revanna, the MP from Karnataka’s Hassan constituency.
This came after videos of alleged sexual assault against several women, allegedly recorded by Prajwal Revanna himself, surfaced ahead of Lok Sabha polls in the constituency on April 26.
Prajwal Revanna is believed to be in Germany, where he flew on the intervening night of April 27 and April 28 using his diplomatic passport.
So far, three women have filed complaints against Prajwal Revanna alleging sexual assault.
On April 28, HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna were booked by the Karnataka Police for sexual harassment and criminal intimidation. The first information report was based on a complaint by a woman, who worked in the Revanna household for three-and-a-half years.
The former Karnataka minister was arrested on the basis of the second first information report. In this case, the woman, who worked at the Revanna household three years ago, had allegedly been abducted to prevent her from testifying against Prajwal Revanna. The first information report was filed based on a complaint by the woman’s son in Mysuru district.
In his complaint, the man alleged that his mother is one of the women in the videos of alleged sexual abuse by Prajwal Revanna that had come to light in late April. He alleged that a man named Satish Babanna, a close aide of the Revanna family, had come to their house on the night of April 29 and coerced his mother into accompanying him.
The third first information report was filed based on a complaint by a woman who was a zilla panchayat member and used to visit the legislators to seek funds for development works, reported The Indian Express.
The woman alleged that she was raped and harassed by Prajwal Revanna between January 1, 2021, and April 25, 2024.
In the third first information report, Revanna has been booked for rape, assault and voyeurism – under Indian Penal Code sections 376 (2)(n) (commits rape repeatedly on same woman), 354(a)(1) (physical contact and advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures), 354(b) (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe) and 354(c) (voyeurism).
He has also been booked for violation of privacy under the Information Technology Act.
Also read: ‘We are living in perpetual fear’: Prajwal Revanna video leaks spark panic among women in Hassan
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