JD(S) MLA H D Revanna granted bail by court in kidnap case

BENGALURU: The Special PMLA Court on Monday granted bail to JD(S) leader and Holenarsipura MLA HD Revanna who is facing charges of kidnapping a survivor in an alleged sexual assault involving his son, Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.

The bail was granted on surety of Rs 5 lakh.

Judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat pronounced the order after hearing the arguments of the accused and the prosecution.

Before this, senior advocate C V Nagesh on behalf of Revanna argued that Section 364 (A), invoked against his client, was introduced by way of amendment to Section 364 of IPC to punish dreaded terrorists indulging in abduction after the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight to Afghanistan’s Kandahar in 1999.

Nagesh made this submission to narrate the severity of the offence punishable under Section 364 (A) along with 365 of IPC invoked against the accused Revanna.

Nagesh argued that the registration of the crime is impermissible according to law since the essential factors to attract the offences invoked against the accused do not exist. Revanna has been dragged into the case for political reasons when the Lok Sabha elections are being held, he contended.

The prosecution has not made out a case in the remand application, he said, praying to the court to grant bail in his marathon argument.

Countering it, Additional Special Public Prosecutors Jayna Kothari and Ashok Naik argued that the accused indulged in abducting the victim to cover up multiple sexual assaults by his son who is still absconding. Also, the victim has disclosed the sexual assault in her statement and it is a clear case of abduction.

The severity of punishment is high in this case if it is proven, they said. There is the threat of danger to the victim, witnesses and apprehension of tampering evidence since the accused is influential. There is a prima facie case against him, they argued.