Former Hassan Parliamentarian Found Guilty In Sexual Assault Case By Bengaluru Special Court
The former lawmaker was found guilty in the initial sexual violence case that was formally lodged with the Holenarasipura Rural Police Station located in Hassan District, Karnataka. The specialized tribunal handling cases involving elected representatives had concluded the legal proceedings on July 18 and had withheld its decision until Friday's announcement.
The criminal charges stem from allegations involving a 48-year-old domestic worker who was employed at the family's agricultural property in Gannikada within Hassan district's Holenarasipura region. According to prosecution evidence, the victim was allegedly subjected to sexual assault on two separate occasions during 2021, with the accused reportedly documenting these criminal acts using his mobile device.
Legal authorities have initiated four distinct criminal proceedings against the former parliamentarian, encompassing charges of sexual violence and criminal harassment. A dedicated Special Investigation Team was established to conduct comprehensive inquiries into all allegations leveled against him.
The court has scheduled the pronouncement of punishment for Saturday, August 2, following Friday's guilty verdict. This development represents a significant milestone in what has become one of Karnataka's most high-profile criminal cases involving a political figure.
Prajwal Revanna belongs to the prominent political dynasty as the grandson of former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) senior leader HD Deve Gowda. His political career came under intense scrutiny when the criminal allegations first emerged during the 2024 general election campaign.
The scandal initially broke when storage devices containing explicit video content allegedly featuring the former MP began circulating throughout Hassan constituency just before the April 26, 2024 parliamentary elections. These materials reportedly contained evidence of sexual misconduct involving multiple victims.
Law enforcement agencies apprehended the accused on May 31 of the previous year immediately upon his arrival at Bengaluru Airport following his return from Germany. His arrest was executed in connection with criminal charges filed at the Holenarasipura Town Police Station.
The former parliamentarian's political fortunes suffered dramatically as a result of these allegations. He failed to secure re-election to the Hassan parliamentary seat during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, marking the end of his legislative career. Subsequently, the JD(S) party leadership took disciplinary action by suspending his membership following the registration of multiple criminal cases.
The conviction represents the culmination of intensive investigation efforts by Karnataka police and demonstrates the state's commitment to prosecuting sexual crimes regardless of the accused person's political status or family connections. The case has drawn significant public attention due to the severity of the allegations and the prominence of the accused individual within Karnataka's political landscape.
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His uncle, HD Kumaraswamy is a former chief minister of Karnataka. His mother, Bhavani Revanna is a former member of the zila panchayat and his brother, Sooraj is an MLC. Prajwal Revanna (in white kurta) at a campaign rally on April 14, 2024. (PTI) Janata Dal (Secular), the party founded by Deve Gowda, is a coalition partner of the BJP. During the 2024 general election, just days before Prajwal's crimes went viral, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had personally campaigned for Prajwal. His conviction and sentencing is the first of four rape cases filed against him. Legal experts expect him to appeal in a higher court. Not an ordinary criminal, not an ordinary crime Revanna after the rape conviction report. (PTI) On the eve of the 2024 general elections where Prajwal was recontesting from Hassan, pen drives containing hundreds of videos of different women being sexually assaulted and raped were dumped in bus stands and other public places. 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Often breaking down in tears, the woman described how Prajwal had raped her on two occasions between 2020 and 2021, once at the Gowda family farm in Gannikada and once after Prajwal's mother, Bhavani had asked her to clean the family house at Basavanagudi. She was able to thwart a third attempt at Gannikada but was so traumatized that she quit her job, not stopping even to take her few clothes from the farmhouse quarter where she lived. She did not complain because she was aware of her rapist's clout. In 2024 when the videos went viral, the woman told the court of how she was taken first to Bhavani's house and then to a farmhouse at Hunsur where she was kept captive but, fortunately, managed to escape. Bhavani faces abetment charges and is at present out on bail. The judgment acknowledges the woman's fortitude and how she was targeted by Prajwal because she was vulnerable and dependent on his family for survival. It finds her testimony, including why she didn't immediately complain, credible. Important lessons Fear and loathing. (PTI) Questions remain. Who leaked the videos and what action will be taken against those who have violated the privacy of survivors, including the 48-year-old who has had to move out of her village? And yet, the judgement sends out important messages to survivors of sexual assault. The first is the necessity of a speedy trial conducted with efficiency, including witness corroboration and scientific forensic investigation in building a water-tight case. The trial tells us of the importance of structural support to survivors of sexual violence, starting with the family and extending to police, prosecutors and judges as she testifies in court. It reminds us that the law applies to all, in theory and on the ground. Confidence has been bruised in the recent past. Powerful men like former Wrestling Federation head Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh are rarely held to account. If they are, as in the case of Kuldeep Singh Senger, former BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh, then the price of justice on survivors is unacceptably high. Prajwal Revanna's conviction must be welcomed as an aberration to this trend of impunity by powerful men. Quoting Lord Denning, 'Be ye ever so high, the law is higher than ye,' justice Bhat has restored some measure of faith in the common citizen's expectation of justice even when the man she accuses comes belongs to an influential political dynasty. And perhaps the judgment reminds us that the problem of sexual violence is systemic. This is not about one man. It's about the feudal politics that persist in a modern nation. It's about patriarchy's skewed power equations that grant protection to sexual predators. It's about a constitutional promise made 75 years ago to the women of this country that they are equal citizens with equal rights to life, justice, and dignity.
