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Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara has asserted there were no lapses on the part of the government in handling cases relating to the alleged sexual abuse of women by Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna and that the Special Investigation Team was probing them from all angles.
He also rubbished the opposition parties' allegations about the collapse of law and order in Karnataka and defended the state police, saying they have 'done well'.
"The SIT is seriously looking into this case (Prajwal Revanna) from all angles and they are quite competent. As soon as we got to know about this case, we first handed it to the CID and then formed the SIT looking at the gravity of the situation. There were no lapses on the part of the government. If the intelligence has failed here in Karnataka, the Central intelligence has also failed because they let him fly out of the country," Parameshwara said.
Speaking with PTI Videos, he said a court has issued an arrest warrant against Prajwal Revanna following which the state government has written to the Centre urging it to cancel his diplomatic passport.
"It's a very sensitive case, and you cannot force people to come and lodge a complaint against Prajwal. We are getting plenty of reports, people fleeing their homes in Hassan, a lot of women going through hardships and toil in their homes. Many of these women who have supposedly appeared in these videos, occupy some position in society. They are all under the scanner from their own families. It is a horrible development," he added.
The 33-year-old Prajwal, who is the grandson of Janata Dal-Secular patriarch and former PM H D Deve Gowda and is the National Democratic Alliance's candidate from Hassan Lok Sabha segment, is facing charges of multiple instances of sexually abusing women.
The cases came to light after a number of explicit videos allegedly involving him became public.
Prajwal reportedly left for Germany on April 27, a day after Hassan went to polls, and is still at large. Interpol has also issued a Blue Corner Notice seeking information on his whereabouts.
Stating that some video footage has been sent to the FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) to ascertain the voice and the image, and the police more or less confirmed the identity of the individual who is seen in the videos, Parameshwara said, "The investigations are still on, so it is inappropriate for me to divulge further details as far as this case is concerned."
Responding to a question, he said, it would be wrong to say the Congress party is making the Prajwal Revanna scandal a political issue.
"The fact of the matter is that this has come to the public domain, and you cannot deny the fact that such a scandal has happened. How is the Congress party involved in this...? Different people are using different languages and I hope and request everyone to refrain from making statements on this issue as it is very sensitive," he said.
Regarding the murder of two young women in Hubballi, following which the opposition has been targeting the government for failure in maintaining law and order, the Home Minister said, "I feel sorry for the families and the victims. These kind of murders shouldn't have happened...the matter is handed over to competent authorities. The culprits have been nabbed. Law will take its own course."
Noting that the Lok Sabha elections in the state were peaceful and many festivals too have happened peacefully, he said, the Karnataka police has done well to maintain law and order.
"The opposition is making big allegations, but they lack data and proof to back them. Lot of murders used to happen during BJP's rule, especially hate crimes, and also communal violence. Murders happened in coastal areas, citing religious sentiments, all that has come to a halt now. I have been monitoring the situation across the state sitting in Bengaluru. One thing is for sure we will not allow things to go out of control, the way it has been in certain states in the country," he added.
On the ongoing probe into the Bitcoin scam, Parameshwara said he was told by officers that it is the 'biggest financial scam' in recent times.
"Some officers have deposed before the investigators. There are certain people, who are in public life, are also involved. It is too technical and crores and crores of rupees are involved so this is going to take a lot of time before a watertight case is made out of it. One person has been arrested and a lot of details are emerging," he said.
Asserting that there is no truth in BJP's claims about the collapse of the Congress government in the state post the Parliamentary elections, Parameshwara said, 'they are just trying to create confusion...we have a very stable government here'.
The senior leader, who has also served as the state Congress chief in the past, said his party has done exceedingly well in Karnataka, and should be getting more than 20 out of the 28 Lok Sabha seats.
"We have a good reputation. We have delivered the promises made in the manifesto, as far as guarantee schemes are concerned," he said.
Stating that he doesn't see a Modi wave, Parameshwara further said, "I have not visited north India, but then I do get these reports from my colleagues and media that the BJP is not in the same position as it was last time around, and the chances of the INDIA bloc forming the government are really high."