SIT invokes Section 376 of IPC against Prajwal Revanna
It has now come to light that the Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing alleged multiple instances of sexual abuse by Prajwal Revanna, has invoked Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for rape against the “absconding” Hassan MP in the rst FIR registered against him on April 28, a day after he ©ew out of the country to Germany.
With this, the number of rape cases against Prajwal Revanna has risen to three.
Two other cases of rape were registered against Prajwal Revanna, based on the statements of a 44year-old
political worker and a former domestic help of around 60 years of age, who was allegedly abducted at the behest of Mr. Revanna and rescued by the Special Investigation Team.
The FIR, in which rape charges have been invoked against Mr. Prajwal now, was registered on April 28 at Holenarsipur Town Police Station and was the rst case referred to the SIT during its formation.
Based on a complaint by a 47-year-old former domestic help in their Holenarsipur household, also a relative of Mr. Revanna’s wife Bhavani Revanna, Mr. Revanna and Mr. Prajwal were booked for sexual harassment under various subsections of Section 354 of the IPC. The complainant did not reveal rape initially and only alleged that she was sexually harassed and inappropriately touched by the father and the son when she worked in their house.
However, further investigation into the case and the victim’s statement before the magistrate under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) revealed that the woman was raped by Mr. Prajwal.
Following this, the SIT added rape charges against him in the same FIR, even as Mr. Revanna continues to be booked only for sexual harassment in the case.
With this, the number of rape cases against Prajwal has risen to three
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday rejected the Opposition BJP’s fresh demand to call in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the allegations of sexual assault made against Hassan MP and JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna. Instead, he reiterated his faith in the State police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT), which is handling the case.
Asking the BJP why it does not trust the State police, the CM accused the Opposition party of issuing “misleading” statements aimed at causing confusion in people’s minds about the SIT, which he said was conducting a “fair probe”.
‘Faith in State police’
“We are not interfering in the functioning of the police. The police have been given full freedom. We have belief and faith in our police. They are e¤cient,” Mr. Siddaramaiah said.
Defending the SIT probe, Mr. Siddaramaiah said, “It’s not that I don’t have faith in the CBI. When I was the Chief Minister earlier, I had handed seven cases to the CBI, but there was no conviction even in a single one.”
‘SIT probe biased’
Earlier in the day, BJP leaders — including former CM Basavaraj Bommai and Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R. Ashok — made a fresh pitch for a CBI probe, alleging that the SIT probe lacked proper direction. Claiming that the probe was not impartial, they accused the SIT of arresting the complainants instead of the accused.
Responding to a question from journalists on the arrest of BJP leader Devaraje Gowda who was allegedly behind the circulation of videos which recorded the sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated by Mr. Parjwal Revanna, the Chief Minister said that “the BJP’s job is to make false accusations”.