New Delhi: Grandson of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, former JD(S) Member of Parliament Prajwal Revanna has been convicted on charges of rape by a Bengaluru trial court.
He has been convicted of raping a 48-year-old woman working at the family’s Gannikada farmhouse in Hassan. The woman has also accused Revanna of raping her at his Bassavnagudi home in Bengaluru.
The woman was allegedly abducted on the directions of Prajwal’s father, former Karnataka minister HD Revanna and wife Bhavani Revanna in April 2024, to prevent her from testifying.
Purported videos of the assault on her were among the videos of abuse of hundreds of women, allegedly perpetrated by Prajwal, that had leaked in April last year. In the video, the woman could be heard pleading with Prajwal: “Beda Anna, bittbidi, (‘don’t brother, please spare me’).
ThePrint had met her family in Mysuru when she was abducted. “We won’t be bought”, the family had declared then, as they grappled with the trauma of their mother being kidnapped, and learning of the assault on her.
“We were expecting a conviction order since we have video evidence of the crime,” Roopa Hassan, a Hassan-based activist, told ThePrint. “It is a victory for all victims. It will definitely empower other women to speak up, but the question they’re asking right now is: What happened to the case pertaining to distribution of the videos,” she added.
Also read: ‘We won’t be bought’ — family of Mysuru woman accuses Prajwal of rape, says she was ‘kidnapped’
The Timeline
On 27 April 2024, the Karnataka Government had announced the formation of a Special Investigation Team to probe leaked videos allegedly of Revanna, abusing hundreds of women. Pen drives had been left at bus stops and train stations across Hassan.
On 2 May 2024, Prajwal was booked on charges of rape. And a lookout notice was issued, but Revanna had fled to Germany by then.
On 4 May, the woman who had been allegedly abducted was rescued by senior policemen and the Special Investigation team.
In September, the SIT filed a charge sheet in the case of the 48-year-old woman. The 1,625- page charge sheet named 113 witnesses, including forensic experts, who confirmed the man in the video was Prajwal Revanna. Prajwal’s DNA was also found on the woman’s petticoat which she had kept with herself, unwashed.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)