Bengaluru: JD(S) Parliamentarian from Hassan and grandson of party Supremo HD Deve Gowda, Prajwal Revanna, who is facing charges of involvement in the sex scandal of Hassan, was expelled from the party on Monday.

Obscene video clips, with women allegedly being sexually assaulted, had been found shared in Hassan district and Pajwal was facing allegations of being involved in the sex scandal.

HD Kumaraswamy, the State President of the JD(S), who publicly declared that Prajwal was expelled from the party, told reporters in Shivamogga that Prajwal should face legal action if he was found guilty in the case. He also asked the media not to link either the party's ally BJP or Kumaraswamy himself to the case.

The JD(S) has taken a firm step as the case, especially accusations against Prajwal, was intensifying. Not only rival parties like the Congress but also members in the party had started demanding that the JD(S) leaders take action against the Hassan MP. Analysts opined that the case would prove a setback to the BJP-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Party chief Deve Gowda reportedly decided to expel his grandson from the party, to prevent the possibility of further damage to either the party or the alliance.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Bratislava (Slovakia), May 15: Slovakia's populist Prime Minister Robert Fico was wounded in a shooting Wednesday afternoon and taken to hospital.

Reports on TA3, a Slovakian TV station, said that Fico, 59, was hit in the stomach after four shots were fired outside the House of Culture in the town of Handlova, some 150 kilometers northeast of the capital, where the leader was meeting with supporters. A suspect has been detained, it said.

Police sealed off the scene, and Fico was taken to a hospital in Banska Bystrica.

The shooting in Slovakia comes three weeks ahead of crucial European Parliament elections, in which populist and hard-right parties in the 27-nation bloc appear poised to make gains.

Deputy speaker of parliament Lubos Blaha confirmed the incident during a session of Slovakia's Parliament and adjourned it until further notice, the Slovak TASR news agency said.

Slovakia's major opposition parties, Progressive Slovakia and Freedom and Solidarity, canceled a planned protest against a controversial government plan to overhaul public broadcasting that they say would give the government full control of public radio and television.

“We absolutely and strongly condemn violence and today's shooting of Premier Robert Fico" said Progressive Slovakia leader Michal Simecka. “At the same time we call on all politicians to refrain from any expressions and steps which could contribute to further increasing the tension.”

President Zuzana Caputova condemned “a brutal and ruthless” attack on the premier.

“I'm shocked,” Caputova said. “I wish Robert Fico a lot of strength in this critical moment and a quick recovery from this attack.”

Fico, a third-time premier, and his leftist Smer, or Direction, party, won Slovakia's Sept. 30 parliamentary elections, staging a political comeback after campaigning on a pro-Russian and anti-American message.

Critics worried Slovakia under Fico would abandon the country's pro-Western course and follow the direction of Hungary under populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Thousands have repeatedly rallied in the capital and across Slovakia to protest Fico's policies.

Condemnations of political violence quickly came from leaders across Europe, although no motive for the attack was immediately apparent.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned what she described as a “vile attack.”

“Such acts of violence have no place in our society and undermine democracy, our most precious common good,” von der Leyen said in a post on X.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala called the incident “shocking,” adding “I wish the premier to get well soon. We cannot tolerate violence, there's no place for it in society.” The Czech Republic and Slovakia formed Czechoslovakia till 1992.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on the social media network X: “Shocking news from Slovakia. Robert, my thoughts are with you in this very difficult moment.”