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HD Revanna out of jail in woman kidnapping case
Revanna proceeded to his father and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda’s residence in Padmanabhanagar, where he was arrested on the evening of May 4
Janata Dal (Secular) lawmaker HD Revanna walked out of the Central Jail at Parappana Agrahara in Bengaluru on Tuesday, a day after a special court for elected representatives granted him bail in connection with a kidnapping case.
“I have strong faith in the judicial system. For the past 11 days, I have followed all the orders of the judiciary,” Revanna told reporters after his release. “I won’t comment further on this. I have faith in God, and I will come out of it.” His release was celebrated by a large group of JD(S) supporters who had gathered outside the prison.
Revanna proceeded to his father and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda’s residence in Padmanabhanagar, where he was arrested on the evening of May 4 after his anticipatory bail plea was denied by the special court. The same court granted him bail on Monday.
The scene outside Deve Gowda’s residence was bustling, with numerous JD(S) workers present. Revanna and brother, JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy, remained inside the house for a while before the former went to a temple in Bengaluru to offer prayers.
Revanna’s supporters and party members said his arrest was politically motivated, and they continued to rally behind him. Outside Deve Gowda’s house, JD(S) leader SR Mahesh spoke to the media, saying that Revanna has been emotionally affected by the arrest. “He is hurt that he was framed in the case. The party also thinks his arrest was a political conspiracy,” Mahesh said.
The 66-year-old former minister was arrested by a special investigation team (SIT) on May 4. The arrest was linked to allegations involving the abduction of a woman and accusations of sexual abuse by his son, Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.
Special court judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat granted conditional bail to Revanna after hearing the matter. The woman was allegedly abducted to prevent her from testifying against Prajwal, the public prosecutor argued on Monday. The SIT has also secured the custody of Revanna’s confidant, Sathish Babanna, in connection with the case. It arrested Babanna on May 3 and rescued the woman from a farmhouse in Mysuru’s Hunsur taluk on May 4.
Former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy said on Tuesday that this was not the time for him and the party to celebrate. Reacting to the court’s decision to grant bail to HD Revanna, he said, “I am not happy with the turn of events. This is not the time to celebrate.”
“Don’t expect me to celebrate the release,” he said. “This is an abominable incident.”
Meanwhile, officials of the SIT said that Prajwal Revanna has cancelled his return ticket to India, which was scheduled for May 16.
Prajwal fled to Germany in the last week of April after Karnataka State Commission for Women chairperson Nagalakshmi Chowdhary wrote to chief minister Siddaramaiah, seeking an investigation against Prajwal after obscene video clips allegedly involving the MP started circulating in Hassan.
Prajwal Revanna also skipped summons issued by the SIT to appear before it.
