Ex-JD(S) MP jailed for life in rape case; Fined Rs 11.5 lakh, most to go to victim
Bengaluru: Former JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna was sentenced to imprisonment for the remainder of his life by a Special Court here on Saturday, a day after he was convicted in one of the four sexual abuse and rape cases against him.
Ahead of the sentencing, the 34-year-old grandson of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda wept soundly and appealed to the court for a lesser punishment, stating that he is a BE Mechanical graduate who has always passed on merit and has not committed any wrongdoing.
The Special Court for MPs/MLAs Judge Santosh Gajanan Bhat also imposed a total fine of Rs 11.50 lakh on the accused, and said Rs 11.25 lakh from this fine amount will be paid to the victim.
The court had on Friday convicted Revanna of raping a 48-year-old woman who was working as a househelp at the family’s Gannikada farmhouse in Hassan district’s Holenarasipura. She was allegedly raped twice — at Hassan farm house and Bengaluru residence — in 2021, and the act was recorded by the accused on his mobile phone.
Special public prosecutor Ashok Nayak speaking to reporters said, considering that the rape incidents had happened when the convict was a Member of Parliament, the court, taking into account the seriousness of the offence, has given a maximum punishment
“The court has sentenced life imprisonment for Prajwal Revanna, and as per law, he should be in prison for the full life. The prosecution had invoked various sections, and for all sections, the court has sentenced separate punishments and fines. On the whole, the fine amount is Rs 11,50,000, and a major share of it, Rs 11,25,000, should be given to the victim as per the court order,” he said.
Additional SPP B N Jagadeesha said, the accused is liable to remain in prison under section 376(2)(n) for the remaining period of his life.
“Our argument was about rape and atrocity by a powerful man on an innocent woman and the social stigma,” he said, adding that Prajwal Revanna has the right to appeal, and he can challenge the court order.”
Earlier in the day, while the prosecution sought a life sentence for Revanna, the former MP sought leniency, claiming he did nothing wrong and that his only mistake was his ‘fast’ growth in politics.
He broke down in court as he appealed to the judge for a lesser punishment.
He told the court that he is a BE Mechanical graduate and has always passed on merit.
“...they say that I have raped multiple women, but none of the women have come out voluntarily to complain, they came six days before the election (Lok Sabha polls last year)...the prosecution side brought them purposefully and made them give a complaint,” Prajwal told the court.
Pointing out that the woman (victim) had not complained to anyone, including her husband or kin, about the alleged rape, he said that she came and gave a complaint when certain videos were circulated.
Stating that he will bow down to the court’s conviction, Prajwal said, “I have a family, I have not seen my mother and father for six months now.....please give me a lesser sentence is what I request the court.”
“The only mistake I made in my life is growing fast in politics,” Prajwal, arrested in May last year upon his arrival from Germany, told the court.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT), which probed the case, had filed a 1,632-page charge sheet with 113 witnesses in the case in September 2024.
Revanna was booked under sections 376(2)(k) (being in a position of control or dominance over a woman, commits rape on such woman), 376 (2)(n) (repeated rape on the same woman), 354A (sexual harassment), 354B (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe), 354C (voyeurism), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 201 (disappearance of evidence) of the IPC, and Section 66E (violation of privacy) of the IT Act.
Prosecution advocates Nayak and Jagadeesha, following Prajwal Revanna’s conviction on Friday, said that the court had accepted the prosecution’s case and convicted him on all counts.
Noting that the prosecution examined 26 witnesses and marked 180 documents, and the main evidence is of the victim, Nayak said the prosecution relied not only on the oral evidence, but also on the digital and technical evidence, the DNA report, and the Forensic Sciences Laboratory report.
“The clothes that were worn by the victim during the rape were also identified, and the Investigation Officer (IO) was successful in seizing them even after three years. Also, digital evidence played a role as the accused himself had recorded the video,” he added.
Four separate cases have been registered against Revanna, who is facing charges of rape and sexual harassment, and the SIT was tasked with probing the cases.
The cases came to light after pen drives containing explicit videos allegedly involving Revanna were reportedly circulated in Hassan, ahead of the Lok Sabha polls there on April 26, 2024.
Revanna was arrested by the SIT on May 31 last year, upon his arrival at Bengaluru Airport from Germany in connection with a case registered at the Holenarasipura Town Police Station. He was escorted to the SIT office only by women officers upon his arrest at the airport.
Revanna had failed in his bid to retain the Hassan parliamentary constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. JD(S) suspended him from the party following the cases filed against him.
