Leopard enters village, kills goats, calf near Moodbidri

Bagalkot, Apr 29: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused the Congress of planning religion-based reservation in the country for the sake of vote bank politics but asserted that he will not let it happen.

He said this Congress proposal is to appease minorities as the SC/ST and OBC community is now with the BJP.

"In Karnataka, Congress has started a campaign to change the Constitution and to snatch away the rights of SC/ST and OBCs. Our Constitution does not accept religion-based reservation. But the Karnataka government has given part of OBC reservation to Muslims," Modi said.

Addressing a mega election rally in this district headquarters town, he said, "They (Congress) will not settle with this. They had earlier too in their manifesto said about coming out with a law to provide religion-based reservation. There is a similar signal in their manifesto this time."

"I want to make my Dalit, SC/ST and OBC brothers and sisters aware about Congress' intentions. These people on the basis of religion, to keep their vote bank safe, are planning to loot your right which was given by Babasaheb Ambedkar and the Constitution," he added.

Veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa, BJP candidates and MPs from Bagalkot (Bagalkot) and Vijayapura (Bijapur) - P C Gaddigoudar and Ramesh Jigajinagi, respectively - were among those present at the rally.

Noting that most of SC, ST and OBC MPs in the Parliament are from BJP, Modi said, "So they feel that as SC, ST and OBC are with BJP. To gain the trust of minorities, they want to loot from SC, ST and OBC and give it to minorities. Will you let this happen?"

"I want to guarantee today to my Dalit, Adivasi and OBC brothers and sisters. I will not let such intentions of Congress be successful. To protect your rights, your reservation, Modi will go to any extent. I'm assuring you this," he added.

Bengaluru: In a shocking revelation, a former member of Hassan Zilla Panchayat (ZP) has accused incumbent JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna of raping her multiple times over three years and videographing the alleged crime.

A case was registered by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) based on the statement by the 44-year-old survivor on Wednesday, May 1.

According to the First Information Report (FIR), the woman claimed that when she was a ZP member she used to visit the MLAs and MPs for various development works.

In one such instance in 2021, she met Prajwal seeking his help to get hostel seats for some female students at a local college. The woman, in her statement, said that since the MP was busy, she was asked to meet him the next day.

“The following day I visited the MP at his office and the MP's quarters in Hassan. The staff present there told me to wait on the first floor as there were many others in the hall. Prajwal spoke to some of the women waiting there, spoke with them and sent them off until I was the only one left,” the woman alleged.

As per the survivor, the MP then called her inside a room and she obliged.

“He held my hand, pulled me inside and locked the door. When I asked him why was he closing the door, he told me nothing would happen and made me sit on the bed. He said my husband should talk less and warned me of the consequences. He also said that because of my husband, his mother, Bhavani Revanna, missed the MLA ticket. He told me that if my husband wants to grow politically, I should listen to him [Prajwal],” the woman alleged.

Next, Prajwal allegedly told the woman to lie down on the bed and undress. When the woman refused and said that she would shout, Prajwal allegedly threatened her that he had a gun and warned of dire consequences for her and her husband.

The woman alleged that Prajwal took out his mobile phone and then raped her.

“He raped me and sexually assaulted me and recorded the act on his mobile phone,” the woman alleged. “He threatened to leak the video if I ever spoke about it and told me to be there whenever he wanted. After that, he used to video call me frequently, ask me to be naked during the call and raped me in multiple instances.”

The woman claimed that she was scared and did not make the incident public and chose to come forward after she learnt of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the Karnataka government to probe the alleged Hassan sex scandal.

A case was registered under Sections 376(2)(n) (commits rape repeatedly on the same woman), 506 (criminal intimidation), 354A(1)(physical contact and advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures), 354B (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe) and 354C (voyeurism) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 66E (violation of privacy) of the Information Technology (IT) Act.

Prajwal is also accused in a sexual harassment case along with his father, Holenarasipur MLA HD Revanna, registered at the Holenarasipur police station in Hassan on April 28. 

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has written to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, urging him to extend all possible help to the victims of JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna's alleged sexual abuse.

In a letter to Siddaramaiah, Gandhi condemned the actions of Revanna, an MP from Hassan in Karnataka, and accused him of enjoying immunity with the blessings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

In a veiled attack on Modi, the Congress leader said he has never come across a senior public representative who has constantly chosen silence in the face of untold violence against women.

"I request you to kindly extend all possible support to the victims," Gandhi said in his letter to the Karnataka chief minister.

"They deserve our compassion and solidarity as they fight their battle for justice. We have a collective duty to ensure that all parties responsible for these heinous crimes are brought to book," he added.

Describing the incidents as "horrific sexual violence" unleashed by the incumbent Member of Parliament, Gandhi alleged that Revanna sexually assaulted and filmed hundreds of women over several years.

"Many who looked up to him as a brother and son were brutalised in the most violent manner and robbed of their dignity. The rape of our mothers and sisters warrants the strictest possible punishment."

"I am deeply shocked to learn that as far back as December 2023, our Home Minister Shri Amit Shah was informed by Shri G Devaraje Gowda about Prajwal Revanna's antecedents, especially his history of sexual violence and the presence of videos filmed by the perpetrator," the former Congress chief said.

He said what is even more shocking is that despite these gruesome allegations being brought to the notice of the seniormost leadership of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre, Modi campaigned and canvassed for a "mass rapist".

"Furthermore, the Union government wilfully allowed him to flee India to derail any meaningful investigation. The deeply perverse nature of these crimes and the absolute immunity enjoyed by Prajwal Revanna with the blessings of the Prime Minister and Home Minister deserves the strongest condemnation," Gandhi said.

"In my two decades in public life, I have never come across a senior public representative who has constantly chosen silence in the face of untold violence against women. From our wrestlers in Haryana to our sisters in Manipur, Indian women are bearing the brunt of the Prime Minister's tacit support for such criminals," he alleged.

In this backdrop, Gandhi said the Congress has a moral duty to fight for justice for "our mothers and sisters".

"I understand that the Karnataka government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the grave allegations, and a request has been made to the Prime Minister to cancel Prajwal Revanna's diplomatic passport and get him extradited to India at the earliest," he said.

H D Revanna, the Janata Dal (Secular) MLA from Holenarasipura in Karnataka's Hassan district, is the son of former prime minister and JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda and elder brother of former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. He is facing allegations of sexually abusing women.