Hundreds take part in 'Hassan Chalo' protest against Prajwal Revanna, demand justice for victims
Hassan (PTI): Hundreds of people took part in a march here on Thursday, seeking justice for the victims of the alleged sexual abuse by suspended JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna.
They also demand the arrest of the accused and a fair probe into the cases.
The march under the banner 'Namma Nadige, Hassanada Kadega' (Our march towards Hassan), was organised by 'Naveddu Nilladiddare' (If we don't stand up), a human rights collective, and was joined by civil society groups from across the state, including women, labour, farmers, Dalit, and sexual minority.
The march was held amid the beats of 'Tamate' (a percussion instrument) and drums.
Besides demanding the arrest of Prajwal, the participants also sought justice for the victims and expressed solidarity with them.
The protest march began at Hemavathi statue near Maharaja Park here and concluded by handing over a memorandum to Hassan Deputy Commissioner C Sathyabhama, following which a mega convention was held at Taluk office road, during which activists reiterated their demand.
They also strongly condemned the vested interests for exploiting the women in the videos for "political gains", and called on the government to ensure the survivors' privacy, and safety.
Apart from the demand for action against those behind the circulation of pen drives containing videos of sexual assault, they urged the administration to ensure the deletion of videos which are in circulation on social media platforms.
Noted activists including former MP Subhashini Ali, writer Roopa Hassan, Vimala K S were among those who participated in the march.
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Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
