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K’taka HC denies anticipatory bail to Revanna in rape case
The allegations dated back to 2021 when the victim approached Revanna at his office in Hassan to discuss hostel facilities for girls at the BCM hostel.
The Karnataka high court on Friday dismissed the anticipatory bail application filed by former MP Prajwal Revanna in a rape case involving a former member of the Hassan zilla panchayat. Justice M Nagaprasanna, presiding over a single-judge bench, announced the reserved order on Revanna’s application.
During the hearing, G Arun, counsel for the petitioner, sought to withdraw the earlier bail plea, arguing that no charge sheet has been filed in the case. However, the court dismissed the application, stating that the decision was based on the complaint alone and not the absence of a charge sheet.
“You can rest assured not a word from the charge sheet I have relied on. Only on the complaint. The application has been dismissed only on the basis of the complaint and Supreme Court’s judgments,” a news portal, Bar and Bench, quoted the high court.
The allegations dated back to 2021 when the victim approached Revanna at his office in Hassan to discuss hostel facilities for girls at the BCM hostel. According to the complaint, Revanna asked the woman to come back the next day due to his busy schedule. When she returned, he allegedly pointed a gun at her, threatened her, and sexually assaulted her. The woman claimed that Revanna recorded the act on his mobile phone, later making repeated video calls, coercing her to undress, and recorded the interactions. She alleged that he threatened her with severe consequences if she disclosed the incidents.
The woman filed a formal complaint with the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on May 1, 2024, leading to the registration of a case at the cyber police station of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Bengaluru. Revanna has been charged under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code, including rape, criminal intimidation, sexual harassment, voyeurism, and assault to disrobe a woman. Additionally, provisions of the Information Technology Act have been invoked for privacy violations.
This case is one of four rape cases filed against the 33-year-old former MP across Bengaluru and Hassan districts. On November 11, the Supreme Court dismissed Revanna’s bail applications in connection with other related cases. The mounting legal troubles have placed significant pressure on the once-prominent political figure as investigations continue.
