Court extends interim anticipatory bail granted to HD Revanna till May 20
Bengaluru, May 17: A court here on Friday extended the interim anticipatory bail granted to JD(S) MLA and former Karnataka Minister H D Revanna in a sexual harassment case till May 20, while reserving orders on his anticipatory bail plea till then.
The 42nd Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court (ACMM) had earlier heard the matter on Thursday, and had given the 66-year-old interim relief till today.
The sexual harassment case registered against Revanna and his son and MP Prajwal Revanna at Holenarsipur town police station on April 28 pertains to alleged sexual harassment of a 47-year-old house help.
Prajwal reportedly left for Germany on April 27 and is still at large.
The complainant had claimed that the father and son had sexually harassed her at the MLA's residence.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) which is probing the alleged sexual abuse charges against Prajwal and related cases, had sought custody of the former Minister.
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Revanna's advocates sought anticipatory bail in the case.
SIT had sent two notices to Revanna, son of JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, and Prajwal to appear before them for questioning in the case but both of them skipped it.
On Thursday, Revanna applied for anticipatory bail and SIT objected to this and sought either SIT or judicial custody. The court, after hearing both sides, decided to hear the matter again on Friday and till then gave relief to Revanna.
The court resumed the hearing today and, after hearing both sides, reserved order on the bail plea for Monday, and extended interim bail till then.
A Special Court for Elected Representatives on Monday granted bail to Revanna in connection with a kidnap case.
He was arrested by SIT on May 4 in an alleged case of abduction of a woman, linked to the allegations of sexual abuse of women by Prajwal.
The 33-year-old Prajwal is facing charges of multiple instances of sexually abusing women. The scandal has raised a political storm with the ruling Congress and BJP-JD(S) engaged in a slugfest.
An Interpol Blue Corner Notice has been issued against Prajwal in an effort to bring him back.
He was BJP-JD(S) alliance's joint candidate from Hassan Lok Sabha segment, which went to polls on April 26.
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Karnataka Guv to halve convoy size following PM Modi's austerity call
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Thursday reduced the size of his official convoy to the minimum required strength following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's austerity call.
In a post on 'X', the Lok Bhavan said Gehlot had taken the step in response to the Prime Minister's appeal for fuel conservation and reduction in foreign exchange expenditure amid the West Asia crisis.
"Hon'ble Governor of Karnataka Shri Thaawarchand Gehlot has reduced his convoy to the minimum required strength, following Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji's appeal," the post said.
The move comes days after Modi, while addressing a rally organised by the BJP in Hyderabad, called for several measures aimed at conserving foreign exchange and reducing dependence on imports amid tensions in West Asia.
The Prime Minister had urged citizens to reduce petrol and diesel consumption, use metro rail services in cities, adopt carpooling, increase the use of electric vehicles and utilise railway services for parcel transportation. He had also suggested working from home wherever possible to conserve fuel and foreign exchange.
Modi further appealed to people to postpone the purchase of gold and foreign travel for one year, reduce edible oil consumption, lower dependence on chemical fertilisers and promote natural farming and swadeshi products to strengthen self-reliance and conserve foreign exchange.
