SPP appointed to argue sexual abuse case against Prajwal Revanna

Additional State Public Prosecutor BN Jagadeesha has been appointed as a Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) to prosecute the case registered against Hassan Lok Sabha member and Janata Dal (Secular) leader, Prajwal Revanna, who has been booked on allegations of sexual assault..Jagadeesha was appointed as the SPP under Section 24 (8) (Public Prosecutors) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to prosecute the sexual abuse case which names Revanna and his father HD Revanna as accused persons. .The sexual abuse allegations against Prajwal Revanna emerged after over 2,900 videos depicting the sexual assault of several women were recently circulated on social media. As per reports, these videos surfaced days before the Lok Sabha polls took place in Karnataka and involved the sexual abuse of several women by Revanna. Amid the outrage and political storm that followed, Revanna is said to have fled to Germany soon after the April 26 polls. Revanna is also reported to have secured a media gag order from a trial court in Bengaluru last year to restrain the publication of the videos, which he claimed were fake and morphed. After the videos resurfaced, JD (S) suspended Revanna from the political party..On April 28, a first information report (FIR) was registered against Prajwal Revanna and his father HD Revanna under Sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354D (stalking), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 509 (insult to modesty of woman) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Holenaraseepur town police station, Hassan district. The criminal case was registered on a complaint filed by one of the victims. A special investigation team (SIT) led by senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer BK Singh also started its probe into the case and summoned Revanna. .However, in his first communication since the sexual assault allegations emerged, Prajwal Revanna informed today via microblogging site, X (formerly Twitter) that he is "not in Bangalore" and has sought more time to appear before the SIT.His lawyers wrote to the SIT seeking seven days' time for Revanna to appear before the investigating authority. The communication was sent on behalf of Revanna through his lawyer, Advocate Arun G of Jus Lex.