Over the past week, a massive sex scandal has rocked Karnataka, overshadowing the political discourse in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
In the thick of it all is Prajwal Revanna, grandson of former PM HD Deve Gowda, and sitting MP from Hassan. Revanna is also seeking re-election from the constituency as the NDA candidate.
On April 27, the Karnataka government, at the behest of the State Commission for Women, constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the alleged video clips of sexual abuse and exploitation involving the Hassan MP.
While the probe was ordered a day after phase 2 polling in the State, pen drives with thousands of explicit video clips featuring multiple women, allegedly recorded by Revanna himself, had been doing the rounds from way before in Hassan and surrounding regions.
While Revanna is believed to have fled to Germany, on April 28, an FIR was registered in Holenarasipur against him and his father, former Minister H.D. Revanna, for sexual harassment and criminal intimidation based on a complaint by a woman who worked in their household.
With pressure building on an embarrassed JD(S), which is battling for relevance in Karnataka, the regional party suspended Prajwal Revanna earlier this week.
What does the sexual abuse scandal mean for the JD(S)’s future, and its alliance with the BJP? How will this affect the women victims? How limiting are ex-parte injunctions in a case like this?
The Hindu’s S. Bageshree and Nalme Nachiyar discuss.
Reporting: S. Bageshree and Nalme Nachiyar
Video and production: Ravichandran N.
