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Prajwal Revanna
Indian politician (born 1990) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Prajwal Revanna (born 5 August 1990) is a former Indian politician from the Janata Dal (Secular) party who served as a member of the 17th Lok Sabha from Hassan constituency in the state of Karnataka.[2][3][4] In August 2025, he was convicted by a Special Court of Sessions for criminal cases against MPs and MLAs and sentenced to life imprisonment for the sexual assault of a domestic worker.[5][6]
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In 2024, Revanna was accused of raping numerous women, and videos of such acts circulated in Hassan, which were recorded by Revanna himself.[3][7] On August 1, 2025, he was convicted by a Special Court of Sessions for criminal cases in a rape case filed against him by a domestic worker from KR Nagar in Mysuru, Karnataka.[8][9]
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Early life and background
Revanna is the son of H. D. Revanna, former Minister for Public Works Department of Karnataka. He is a grandson of former Prime Minister of India H. D. Deve Gowda and nephew of former Chief Minister of Karnataka, H. D. Kumaraswamy.
Revanna graduated in mechanical engineering from Bangalore Institute of Technology in 2014.[10] He joined a master's degree programme in Australia but discontinued it to join politics.
In 2019, he was appointed as the state general secretary of the Janata Dal (Secular) party (JD(S)).[11] He worked for more than 8 years in JD(S) party.[citation needed]
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Political career
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In 2014, Revanna joined the campaign of H. D. Deve Gowda from Hassan in the 2014 Indian general election.[12] In 2015, he was among the 10 young aspiring politicians in India to be chosen by Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, UK, to be exposed to the British way of governance. Although a JD(S) member, his entry into politics was delayed after the party denied him a ticket in the 2018 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election.[12] Nevertheless, he was involved in the politics of Hassan.
In 2019, Deve Gowda allowed Revanna to contest from Hassan for the Lok Sabha, himself moving to Tumkur.[13] Revanna won from Hassan, and became the only winner from his party's six candidates that contested the elections.[14] Within 12 hours of the win, saddened by his grandfather's defeat from Tumkur, Revanna announced his resignation and offered the seat to Gowda,[15] who asked him to reconsider the decision.[16] In September 2019, the Karnataka High Court issued a summons to him over an incomplete election affidavit. Petitioners of the summons accused Revanna of filing a false and incomplete affidavit with his nomination papers during the 2019 elections.[17] In January 2020, Justice John Michael D'Cunha dismissed the first petition on grounds that the petitioner had not complied with the statutory procedure under Section 81(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and the second on technical grounds.[18]
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Criminal History
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2024 Sexual Abuse Allegations
Revanna again contested from the Hassan constituency in the 2024 general election for the Lok Sabha.[19] On the day of voting, his polling agent filed a complaint with the police alleging that some falsified photos and videos of Revanna were being widely circulated in Hassan district and claimed that "the accused are going door to door and showing these obscene photos and videos, provoking people not to vote for Revanna"[20]
As media attention grew towards the alleged sexual abuse, on 27 April, the Government of Karnataka established a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the allegations. The Karnataka State Commission for Women stated that it had also recorded cases of women being forced and filmed without consent.[21] It was reported that thousands of pen drives containing these videos, reportedly made by Revanna himself, were circulated, some being thrown in public places such as parks, bus stops and a stadium in Hassan.[3][22][23]
The following day, it was reported that Revanna had fled the country for Germany using his diplomatic passport which does not require a visa. His family and party members said that his trip was pre-planned. However, he did not obtain the clearance required for use of a diplomatic passport from the Ministry of External Affairs before traveling to Germany.[24][25] On 30 April, Revanna was suspended by the party, which stated that the suspension would stay till the SIT probe initiated against him was completed.[3][25]
As Revanna continued to evade authorities, the SIT sought help from the Interpol to locate him, and a blue corner notice was issued on 5 May.[26][27]
On 31 May 2024, Revanna was arrested at Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore after arriving on a Lufthansa flight from Munich. Interpol informed the SIT of Revanna's check-in and boarding information from Munich. He was detained by immigration officers and handed over to the police at the airport.[28][29] Initially, a special court for elected representatives remanded him to SIT custody until 6 June, which was later extended to 10 June.[30] Refvanna's father, H. D. Revanna, said he should be hanged if he is found guilty of committing any crime.[31]
Revanna was convicted of rape in the first case. Judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat of the special court for elected representatives found Revanna guilty of sexually assaulting a farm labourer who worked for his family and for recording the assault. This is the first judgement in one of four cases filed against him. On 2nd August 2025, a special court in Bengaluru sentenced Revanna to life imprisonment, and fined him Rs 5 lakh, for sexually assaulting a 48-year-old woman who was working as househelp at his residence. The court also said that the victim will be given Rs 7 lakh in compensation.[32]
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References
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