NEW DELHI: A member of the Indian parliament accused of sexually abusing women and recording videos of his alleged victims left for Europe on a diplomatic passport.
Prajwal Revanna, 33, who represents the Hassan constituency of southern Karnataka state in the lower house, is under investigation for allegedly assaulting hundreds of women.
The allegations involving Revanna have become a major political issue as he is seeking reelection to the Lok Sabha.
Revanna is the grandson of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda and his party Janata Dal (Secular) is an ally of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Randhir Jaiswal confirmed during a media briefing on Thursday that Revanna used a diplomatic passport to travel abroad.
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“He traveled there on a diplomatic passport. Members of parliament are entitled to hold a diplomatic passport,“ he said.
The lawmaker left India for Frankfurt on April 27 soon after the leaked videos circulated, according to reports.
The Karnataka government has formed a special investigation team (SIT) to look into the allegations against him.
State chief minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ask the Ministry of External Affairs and Home Ministry to cancel his passport and get him back to face the probe.
Jaiswal said Revanna did not seek “the political clearance” from the ministry before his trip.
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“This matter is under investigation. The investigation will proceed. After that, appropriate action will be taken,“ he said.
Revanna’s father is H.D. Revanna, who is a member of the Karnataka state assembly.
The allegations against Revanna are “horrific and shameful and these have shaken the conscience of the country,“ the Karnataka chief minister wrote in his letter to Modi.
“While the SIT is working round the clock to investigate the allegations of crimes against several women by Prajwal Revanna, getting him back to the country is of utmost importance so that he faces investigation and trial as per the law of the land,“ Siddaramaiah wrote.
Some women have come forward to file complaints against Revanna and the police registered a case on April 28.
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The Janata Dal (Secular) expelled the lawmaker after the uproar grew.
Pen drives containing thousands of explicit videos purportedly showing the alleged victims of Revanna were distributed in the Hassan constituency days before the polling on April 26, according to local media reports.
