The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday granted regular anticipatory bail to Bhavani Revanna, the mother of rape-accused Prajwal Revanna, in connection with the alleged abduction of a woman who had allegedly been sexually assaulted by her son, reported The Hindu.
The court also permitted the Special Investigation Team of the Karnataka Police looking into the case to take Bhavani Revanna to Hassan and Mysuru districts as part of its investigation.
The abduction case is linked to allegations of sexual abuse against suspended Janata Dal (Secular) leader Prajwal Revanna, who recently lost the Lok Sabha polls from Karnataka’s Hassan constituency.
One of the complainants had accused Prajwal Revanna’s father and Janata Dal (Secular) MLA HD Revanna of abducting her to prevent her from testifying against his son. HD Revanna was arrested on May 4 but released on bail 10 days later.
On May 30, the Special Investigation Team issued a notice to Bhavani Revanna in connection with the abduction. She was asked to be present at her home on June 1 so that the team could question her.
However, when the investigating team reached her residence at Holenarasipur in Hassan district, she was not present. An additional chief metropolitan magistrate then issued a non-bailable warrant against her, according to The Hindu.
On June 7, the High Court had granted Bhavani Revanna interim anticipatory bail, but barred her from visiting Hassan district and the KR Nagar taluk in Mysuru district to prevent her from influencing the investigation. The same bail conditions will continue to apply to her.
On Tuesday, the bench verbally dismissed the police’s argument that once custody of an accused person has been sought, the courts have no power to question the reasons for the request.
The court also observed that Revanna’s mother had answered the majority of questions that the police had asked her, and that it was not necessary for her to answer them in a manner as required by the police.
The court also asked the media to observe restraint while covering the case as it is involves women and said that a “media trial” could lead to undue conclusions about guilt of the accused persons.
Prajwal Revanna was arrested on May 31 for allegedly having raped several women. He was first booked on April 28 on charges of sexual harassment, and a separate rape case against him was filed on May 2. Another rape case was filed against him on May 8.
The former MP was suspended from the Janata Dal (Secular) on April 30 after the allegations came to light. The Janata Dal (Secular) is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
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