BENGALURU: Prajwal Revanna (33), MP of ally JD(S) and Hassan Lok Sabha constituency candidate, has been suspended by the party over the sex scandal that put the NDA on the defensive during the Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka. A show cause notice was also issued to Prajwal.

Prajwal is the grandson of former prime minister and JDS national president HD Deve Gowda and nephew of former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy. There is also a complaint against Prajwal's father (Deva Gowda's son) and former minister HD Revanna. Revanna is Holenarasipura MLA. Prajwal fled to Germany on Saturday after the videos came out.

Hundreds of obscene videos, including ones of Prajwal sexually harassing women, were circulated on social media. It is reported that there are around 3,000 obscene videos on several pen drives. It is alleged that Prajwal himself recorded the footage of the abuse and used it to blackmail the women. The decision of suspension was taken by the party core committee meeting.

The MLAs had demanded the expulsion of Prajwal Revanna and his father HD Revanna. The National Commission for Women also intervened in the matter. The police registered an FIR on the complaint of their housemaid, who alleged that Prajwal and his father had molested her several times between 2019 and 2022. According to the housemaid's complaint, Prajwal misbehaved with her daughter also and Revanna molested her when his wife was not at home.

Siddaramaiah's Congress government, which has received a deadly political weapon to use in the election, immediately appointed a Special Investigation Team. The obscene videos were circulated the day after the polling in the Hassan constituency on the 26th (Saturday). All India Women's Congress president Alka Lamba demanded that the Ministry of External Affairs intervene to bring back Prajjwal, who had fled to Germany that very day.

State Women's Commission Chairperson Nagalakshmi Choudhary said that the pen drive she received contained hundreds of videos and Prajwal was visible in some of them. HD Revanna alleged that the video was fake and made by political opponents.

Released by former driver

It is reported that Prajwal's former driver Karthik Reddy is the one who released the videos and he handed over the footage to BJP leader Devaraja Gowda. Karthik, who was Revanna's family driver for 15 years, had left them after a fight last year. The footage was airdropped from Prajwal's phone. Karthik said that the video evidence will be handed over to the Special Investigation Team.