Days after grandfather Deve Gowda’s ultimatum over sexual abuse allegations, Prajwal Revanna says he will appear before SIT on May 31

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the MP would be arrested upon his return.

Prajwal, who is seeking reelection from Karnataka’s Hassan Lok Sabha seat, had left the country soon after the constituency went to the polls on April 26. Following a request by the SIT, sent via the CBI, Interpol had issued a ‘Blue Corner’ notice seeking information on his whereabouts.

In the video, Prajwal said in Kannada, “First of all, I want to apologise to my parents, my grandfather, Kumaranna (Kumaraswamy), the people of Karnataka, and all party workers for not sharing my whereabouts abroad.”

He said his trip abroad had already been planned before there was any case against him. “When elections were held on April 26, there was no case against me nor was a Special Investigation Team formed. My trip abroad had already been planned. I left after the elections, and after three-four days, while watching YouTube and news channels, I came to know about this (the case). Then SIT issued a notice, and I have responded to the notice through my X account, and also through my lawyer, seeking seven days’ time,” he said.

However, he said he subsequently went into “depression and isolation”.

“Just a day later, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders started campaigning against me in open forums, and politically conspiring against me. I went into depression and isolation, which is why I requested your apology earlier (for not informing about my whereabouts),” he said in the nearly three-minute video. He did not reveal his location.

He claimed that some political forces also conspired against him in Hassan, and that this was why he had stayed away.

“Do not take this the wrong way. I will appear before the SIT on Friday, May 31, at 10 am. I will support the investigation totally and will also respond properly. I have full confidence in the courts. I am confident that the cases against me are false and I will come out of it,” he said.

On April 28, a day after Prajwal left India, the Congress government in Karnataka set up an SIT to investigate objectionable videos allegedly shot by him, and allegations of sexual assault. These were referred to the government and state police chief by the chairperson of the state women’s commission.

The SIT subsequently registered three FIRs under rape charges against the Hassan MP.

On May 1, in his first reaction to the SIT investigation, Prajwal had said in a post on X: “As I am not in Bangalore to attend the inquiry, I have communicated to CID Bangalore through my advocate. Truth will prevail soon.”

Prajwal’s grandfather, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, had written a letter last week urging him to return and face the investigation.

“At this juncture, I can do only one thing. I can issue a stern warning to Prajwal and ask him to return from wherever he is and surrender before the police. He should subject himself to the legal process. This is not an appeal that I am making, it is a warning that I am issuing. If he does not heed to this warning, he will have to face my anger and the anger of all his family members. The law will take care of the accusations against him, but not listening to the family will ensure his total isolation,” Deve Gowda wrote in the May 24 letter titled ‘My Warning to Prajwal Revanna’.

On Monday, after Prajwal released the video, his uncle Kumaraswamy said, “Our national president, H D Deve Gowda, had issued a warning and I had made an appeal for him to return and cooperate with the SIT investigation. We are a little relieved that he is returning to the country based on the appeal made by party workers.”

State Home Minister Parameshwara welcomed his decision to return and face the probe. The minister also took a dig at the Centre, saying it did not cooperate in bringing back Prajwal. “The Ministry of External Affairs had said it would cancel his diplomatic passport. However, there is no response to any of our letters,” Parameshwara said.