'World's biggest sexual abuse case', says Congress on charges against Prajwal Revanna

Bengaluru: JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna is facing allegations in the "world's biggest sexual abuse case", the ruling Congress in Karnataka alleged on Wednesday and claimed that attempts are on to cover up the scandal by diverting attention towards the release of explicit videos and those behind it.

The claims were made by four ministers of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's cabinet at the Congress party office here to defend the government and its leadership following allegations from JD(S) second-in-command H D Kumaraswamy and BJP leader G Devaraje Gowda.

"Several issues are being discussed in the state, but looking at the discussions I feel that somewhere we have forgotten the background. According to my knowledge the discussion that is going on is about the world's biggest sexual abuse case. I feel its importance has been forgotten", said minister Krishna Byre Gowda, one of the four cabinet members who addressed a press conference.

Krishna Byre Gowda, Ramalinga Reddy, N Cheluvarayaswamy, and M C Sudhakar were fielded to defend Shivakumar - who is also the state Congress President - the party, and the government.

The opposition leaders from JD(S) and BJP had accused Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's role in the distribution of pen drives containing explicit video clips of Hassan MP Prajwal and several women, who were allegedly sexually abused by him.

The 33-year-old Prajwal is Kumaraswamy's nephew. The scandal has raised a political storm with the ruling Congress and BJP-JD(S) engaged in a slugfest.

While the Congress government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the cases, the BJP and JD(S) - NDA partners - have demanded that it be handed over to the CBI, and action be taken against those behind the wide circulation of explicit videos.

Minister Gowda said, "I challenge, if there is another case where the "mangalya" (mangalsutra) of so many Hindu women have been snatched away and families have been broken, please let me know. This is the main case, allegations are there and they have to be investigated, victims should get justice and the guilty should be punished, this should be our objective."

"But looking at the direction of discussion that is happening it seems that rather than the main incident, how the incident came to light is in the focus", he said, adding that "attempts" seem to be on to cover up the "world's biggest sexual abuse case" and to save the accused.

There is a "planned effort" and "surgical strike" being done to cover up the case, Gowda further claimed, adding that the diversion attempts are on to shift the focus on how the case came to light.

Questioning as to why Devaraje Gowda, BJP leader and a lawyer, did not hand over the video clips in a sealed envelope to the police or the court after first getting hold of it, he said, "He instead used it to blackmail, he had even met Kumaraswamy - what was discussed between them, let both of them come before Hasanamba devi (deity of Hassan) and swear before the God."

He also alleged that after "utilising" the JD(S) in the Lok Sabha election, the BJP is doing everything to "finish off" the regional party, and said, "As he (Kumaraswamy) cannot speak against them (BJP), he is showing anger against the Congress accusing us of having a role behind the release of the videos... Did we ask to do sexual abuse and record it?", he said. Stating that the government is equally concerned about the circulation of video and photo materials, Gowda said that as more of such materials get circulated, the honour of victims will get violated further.

"SIT has passed a clear order that any further circulation of these materials will be an offence and cases will be booked against them. Government is very serious. While they are pursuing the investigation of the main case, the SIT is also taking action to prevent further circulation (of the videos)", he added.

Minister Reddy said that the incident actually came out because of the rift between BJP and JD(S) local leaders in Hassan and that Shivakumar's and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's names are being unnecessarily dragged into it.

Kumaraswamy or Revanna (Prajwal's father), should have asked Prajwal to surrender, he said. "If they had advised him, the issue would not have arisen, and from the investigation, the truth would have anyway come out."

Cheluvarayaswamy too accused the JD(S) leadership of trying to turn the case to a different angle and politicising it, as he took a dig at the regional party for holding protests against the Congress government on the issue.

Targeting BJP and JD(S) leaders for unnecessarily blaming Shivakumar, he also hit out at BJP leader and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka for alleging that Vokkaligas are being targeted in connection with the case.