Prajwal Revanna life sentence: Got justice but we live still in fear, says kin of victim
Bengaluru: While former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the sexual assault of a woman, the victim and her family continue to live in fear and trauma, still reeling from the emotional and psychological toll of the ordeal.
The victim’s son-in-law spoke out about the ongoing challenges, recalling how, despite the victim’s brave testimony and the eventual conviction, the family’s hope for justice had been overshadowed by the pressure from Revanna’s influential family. “After the traumatic cross-examinations, despite assurances from police, we didn’t have much hope that justice would be served due to the influence Prajwal Revanna’s family wields. We got justice, but the trauma and fear will continue to haunt us,” The Indian Express quoted him as saying.
Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda and son of H.D. Revanna, a former Karnataka minister, was sentenced to life imprisonment for one of four rape and sexual harassment cases filed against him in 2024.
The victim, a former domestic worker at a farmhouse owned by Prajwal’s family, had endured intense cross-examinations during the trial. According to her son-in-law, she broke down multiple times under questioning but remained resolute in her testimony. "She stood strong and gave her statement in court," he said.
The investigation team’s chief, BK Singh, also praised the victim’s courage, stating, “The survivor stood like a rock. The defence tried every possible way to derail the court proceedings, but she stood strong and even when she was cross-examined for eight hours.”
Due to a lack of support in her village, the victim, who is now living in Bengaluru, has been forced to rebuild her life far from home. An SIT official assisted her in finding work in the city. However, the family’s safety remains a major concern, with the son-in-law revealing that they still live in constant fear. “Even to this day we live in fear. After the judgment was announced, one SIT officer called me and said to not reveal my whereabouts with anyone. For over a year, we have followed what SIT police told us to do and we will continue to do so,” TIE quoted him as saying said.
The victim has not been able to return to her village, located in Mysuru district, for long. She visited once over the past year, but her stay was brief, and she continues to feel ostracized. “We felt outcast in the village. There were also a lot of rumours that were being spread,” he added.
Despite the hardships, the victim’s kin expressed gratitude for the SIT’s support, noting that without the SIT's protection, their lives could have taken a far more tragic course, especially given Prajwal Revanna’s influence in the regions of Hassan and Mysuru.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
