Six-member gang chases man, vandalizes fast-food joint, thrashes owner

The JD(S) on Tuesday, April 30, announced that former Indian Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda's grandson Prajwal Revanna has been suspended from the party temporarily until allegations against him over sexual abuse are probed.

Revanna and his father HD Revanna, also a JD(S) MLA, were booked on Sunday by the police for sexual harassment and criminal intimidation based on a complaint from a woman, who worked in their household.

"We welcome SIT against Prajwal Revanna. We've taken a decision to recommend our party's national president to suspend him from the party till the SIT investigation is completed, " JD(S) core committee president GT Devegowda said.

Revanna currently is not in India. Opposition members raised concerns over how he was allowed to leave the country.

"A decision was already made. Tomorrow it is to be recommended at the core committee meeting in Hubballi. Because he (Prajwal) is a Member of Parliament, it has to be done from Delhi. So I had requested Deve Gowda (JD(S) National President and former PM). Neither he (Gowda) nor I were aware of this issue," party chief H D Kumaraswamy has said yesterday. "Some issues have come out, based on that it has been decided yesterday itself to suspend (him). But many were in a hurry."

Prajwal, 33, represents the BJP-JD(S) alliance in the Lok Sabha election in Hassan, which happened on Friday.

Kumaraswamy alleged that Congress was manipulating facts to destroy the image of his family amid the controversy over the 'obscene' video case against his nephew Prajwal.

"We are not going to protect him, we will take severe action but the government's responsibility is more," Kumaraswamy said.

"This is the manipulation of Congress to destroy the image of our family. What is the role of Dewegowda Ji or me? We are not responsible for all those things. This is the individual issue of Prajwal Revanna. I am not in contact with him (Prajwal). It is the responsibility of the government to bring him before the law. Morally we have decided to make some decisions," Kumaraswamy told reporters on Tuesday.

Prajwal Revanna sex scandal

The state government under CM Siddaramaiah has formed a Special Investigation Team to look into the matter. In recent days, certain explicit video clips purportedly featuring Prajwal have circulated in Hassan.

In response, Revanna stated his willingness to cooperate with any investigation regarding the allegations of sexual abuse against his son and himself. He affirmed their readiness to accept any legal consequences if the accusations are substantiated.

Prajwal's father HD Revanna said that his son would appear for an SIT probe whenever he is asked to.

A case of sexual harassment and stalking was registered on Sunday against HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna at Holenarasipur police station based on a complaint by their cook.

The complainant said she is a relative of Revanna's wife Bhavani.

She claimed that four months into her employment, Revanna began sexually harassing her, while his son Prajwal engaged in video calls with her daughter, engaging in "vulgar conversations."

She also alleged that there is a threat to her life as well as other members of her family.

Bengaluru: Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) has issued a series of animated shorts in Kannada advising people of appropriate measures to take during extreme temperatures to keep oneself safe.

 “Karnataka has not seen such extreme temperatures and heat waves in the recent past. So, we wanted to ensure a wider reach for safety measures, therefore we decided to issue them in a reader-friendly format,” said an official from KSNDMC.

Meteorological Centre Bengaluru, Indian Meteorological Department, had issued a five-day heat wave warning, lasting till April orange alert, for parts of Karnataka.

“In places like Bagalkote, Vijayapura, Kalaburgi, Yadgir, Raichur, Koppal, Ballari, Tumkur, Mandya, Gadag, Davangere and Chitradurga, the temperature is likely to touch 40 degrees Celsius tomorrow,” said C P Patil, director of the centre.

On April 25, these places recorded a maximum temperature of 39 degrees Celsius.

Orange alert would mean increased likelihood of heat illness symptoms in people who are exposed to sun for a prolonged period of time as well as those who do heavy manual work.

According to Patil, coastal Karnataka will also have very hot and humid weather conditions, making it very uncomfortable for people there.

“It’s best for children and old people to avoid exposure to heat in coastal areas too,” added Patil.

In places where heat wave is predicted, people are advised to avoid direct exposure to sunlight between 12 noon and 3pm.

“When they go out, it is best to use protective goggles, an umbrella or a hat. Also aerated drinks must be avoided since they cause dehydration. Best to drink water as much as possible, even if you don’t feel thirsty,” said M Rajavel, head of LACD, Meteorological Centre, Bengaluru.

People are also advised not to leave the children or pets inside parked vehicles.

The maximum and minimum temperatures of Bengaluru are very likely to be around 37 degree Celsius and 23 degree Celsius respectively for the next 48 hours, said Patil.

Hassan recorded the highest jump from its normal minimum temperature. It recorded 22.6 degrees Celsius, about 2.8 degrees more than usual.

According to IMD, on April 29 light rain is also very likely in isolated places over Bidar, Kalaburgi, Yadgir, Vijayapura, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Kodagu, Mysuru, Mandya and Chitradurga districts.

On April 30, light rain is predicted again for Bidar, Kalaburgi, Yadgir, Vijayapura, Raichur, Koppal, Ballari, Chikkamagaluru, Tumkur, Chikkaballapura, Bengaluru Rural, Bengaluru Urban and Kodagu districts.

Incidentally, KSNDMC has also issued a series of animated advisory for lightning safety.

“We also update temperature every 15 minutes in our X handle in coordination with IMD,” added the KSNDMC official.

Mangaluru: The Bengaluru-Mangaluru air route has recently surpassed the Mumbai route to become the busiest for Mangaluru International Airport.

According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s city pairing data for March this year, 51,734 passengers travelled between Mangaluru and Bengaluru, while 50,340 passengers flew on the Mangaluru-Mumbai route.

In January and February, the Mumbai air route had the highest passenger flow with 60,306 and 52,732 passengers, respectively, compared to 53,509 and 47,530 for Bengaluru during the same months. However, the trend shifted in March, with the Bengaluru-Mangaluru route surpassing Mumbai.

An official from MIA explained, “The first reason for Bengaluru taking over Mumbai is that flights that almost fly full to Mumbai were reduced from March, after the ministry of civil aviation suggested easing air traffic congestion at Mumbai airport. The air carrier IndiGo, which used to operate four flights a day from MIA, reduced it to three. Air India Express, which operates two flights a day, has made no changes. As a result of this, Bengaluru has taken over Mumbai. A total seven flights operates per day to Bengaluru.” 

The official added that despite the reduction in flights, the Mumbai route still experiences high demand. DGCA data for 2023 shows that the Mumbai and Bengaluru sectors have experienced growth of 11.9% and 19.3%, respectively.

The Mangaluru-Mumbai sector has seen a total of 5,52,767 passengers, followed by Bengaluru with 5,52,500 passengers in the same calendar year.