JD(S) Leader Accuses Prajwal Revanna Of Threatening His Wife With Gun, Sexual Assault Over 3 Years

A JD(S) leader has accused Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda, of rape, voyeurism, and violation of privacy. The complainant alleges that during the first assault, Prajwal blamed her husband for his mother Bhavani Revanna losing the MLA ticket and threatened her.

According to the FIR registered on May 1 by the CID, the complainant, a former public official, claims Prajwal Revanna raped and sexually harassed her for over three years between January 1, 2021, and April 25, 2024. She also accuses him of recording videos of the assaults and threatening to leak them on social media.

The first instance of abuse allegedly occurred when she visited him at the MP quarters in Hassan to secure seats for girls at a government hostel. Prajwal asked her to wait upstairs where other women were present. After speaking to the other women, he reportedly took her to his room, where he threatened her with a gun, forced her to strip, and recorded it. He then allegedly threatened to kill her if she told anyone about it, leading to further instances of abuse, including rape, as per the FIR.

Prajwal Revanna has been booked under sections 376 (2n) (raping a woman multiple times), 354(a)(1) (unwelcome sexual overtures), 354(b) (disrobing a woman), and 354(c) (voyeurism) of the Indian Penal Code and section 66(e) (violation of privacy) of the Information Technology Act. This is the second FIR registered against him.

Three FIRs have been filed after the alleged abuse came to light on April 27. In an FIR filed on April 28, both Prajwal and his father HD Revanna have been booked for sexual harassment. On May 2, Revanna was booked for kidnapping a woman from Mysuru. Two of the complainant women are Vokkaligas, and one of them is related to Bhavani Revanna.

The Special Investigation Team is probing the allegations of sexual abuse against Prajwal Revanna. He failed to appear before the SIT following a notice served on Tuesday, which prompted the SIT to issue a lookout circular. The SIT also served notice to his father, HD Revanna, who is an accused in a case filed by a 47-year-old woman. Revanna has since sought anticipatory bail from a Bengaluru court.