What is stopping govt from cancelling Revanna's diplomatic passport, asks Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Saturday asked the government what is stopping it from cancelling the diplomatic passport of suspended JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna, who is accused of sexual abuse.
The 33-year-old Hassan MP reportedly flew to Germany soon after the Karnataka State Commission for Women chairperson Nagalakshmi Chowdhary wrote to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to order a probe into the sexual allegations against him after scores of explicit videos and pictures went viral on social media.
In a post on X, Ramesh questioned how Prajwal was allowed to escape.
"What is stopping the PM from having the diplomatic passport to Prajwal Revanna cancelled? How and why was he allowed to flee the country like Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi were?" the Congress leader asked.
Prajwal, the grandson of Janata Dal (Secular) patriarch and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, has been accused of sexual assault after several videos allegedly featuring him with multiple women surfaced.
He is the NDA candidate from the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency, which went to polls on April 26. The JD(S) had formed an alliance with the BJP in 2023.
On Friday, one more rape case was registered against Prajwal, taking the number of cases pertaining to the alleged sexual abuse of several women to three, police sources said.
The FIR was registered against Prajwal on May 8 in Bengaluru, according to sources in the Special Investigation Team which was constituted for a probe after a huge cache of explicit videos allegedly showing the Hassan MP sexually abusing several women became public.
The first FIR pertains to molestation of his cook in Holenarasipura in Hassan. Prajwal's father and Holenarasipura MLA H D Revanna is also an accused in the case. The second case pertains to raping a JD(S) worker at gunpoint.
H D Revanna is currently lodged in the Central Jail at Parappara Agrahara in Bengaluru under judicial custody after a 20-year-old youth alleged that Revanna and his aide kidnapped his mother. The youth said his mother had figured in one of the videos where she was allegedly tied and raped by Prajwal.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on May 2 said that Prajwal travelled to Germany on a diplomatic passport and did not seek political clearance for the trip.
A Blue Corner notice of the Interpol seeking information on his whereabouts has also been issued against the Hassan MP.
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Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee holds roadshow in south Kolkata to end campaign
Kolkata (PTI): Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee undertook a roadshow in south Kolkata spanning over six kilometres on Monday afternoon at the fag end of campaigning for the second and final phase of the West Bengal assembly election.
The TMC chief was accompanied by party Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose and candidates Aroop Biswas and Debasish Kumar from Tollygunge and Rashbehari, respectively.
People waiting on the roadside and on rooftops and balconies waved at Banerjee as she greeted them with folded hands, walking briskly, as her party compatriots had a tough time keeping pace with her.
The chief minister is contesting from the Bhabanipur assembly seat, where she is pitted against her bete noire, Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP, who defeated her in the 2021 elections in Nandigram.
Banerjee was subsequently elected from Bhabanipur in a byelection.
The roadshow started at Sukanta Setu in the Jadavpur area and culminated at Gopalnagar crossing, past her Kalighat residence, with two small stopovers in between.
TMC flags, festoons, cutouts of Banerjee and banners with slogans in favour of the candidates adorned the roadsides through which the road show passed and culminated at around 5.30 pm.
A large number of TMC supporters participated in the roadshow that Banerjee conducted to end her campaign for the 2026 assembly election in West Bengal.
