‘Talk is cheap’: Siddaramaiah responds to Amit Shah over Prajwal Revanna scandal

Amid an already-heated Lok Sabha elections 2024 campaign, Congress and BJP are exchanging fresh barbs over JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna’s sex scandal row. Congress had accused the BJP of knowing about the row but continuing to maintain their ally’s leader in Karnataka and shielding him. BJP too questioned the Congress government in the state, and said that the state government has to take action on it, not them. 

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah responded to Home Minister Amit Shah and said that the BJP’s conduct in the past has shown that talk is cheap. He was responding to Amit Shah’s remarks on BJP standing for the “matrushakti” of the country. 

“Dear HM @AmitShah avare, thanks for finally expressing outrage in the #PrajwalRevanna matter. You have also said you don’t condone violence against women even if it is done by an ally of yours. One is tempted to believe you, but your conduct in the past has shown that talk is cheap: 

Can we forget how Olympian Girls were sexually harassed by your MP? Who did you stand with? Your MP, of course, and you let the women athletes sit in protests on the streets of Delhi for weeks.

Can we forget how rapist convicts of the Bilkis Bano were released on parole by the Gujarat BJP government and your party men garlanded them? It took the Supreme Court to reprimand your party’s state govt,” said Siddaramaiah. 

The Karnataka Chief Minister spoke of the Unnao case, and accused BJP leaders of standing by the perpetrators of a minor Dalit girl. He said that no one can also forget how BJP defended the perpetrators of rape in the Hathras case. “Can we forget how the BJP turned a blind eye when women were made to parade naked in Manipur? Women of the nation know the truth, and it's time for you to wake up to the reality,” he said. 

WHAT AMIT SHAH HAD SAID

His comments come as Amit Shah, directing his questions to Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, asked whose government rules Karnataka and why have they not taken action till now. "The BJP's stand is clear that we stand with the 'matrushakti' of the country. I want to ask Congress, whose government is there? The government is of the Congress Party. Why have they not taken any action till now? We do not have to take action on this as this is a law and order issue of the state, state government has to take action on it. It is very serious, we cannot tolerate it. We want to ask Congress that despite being in power, why hasn't the government acted yet? Priyanka (Gandhi Vadra) ji should ask their Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister," said Shah.

Priyanka Gandhi had earlier criticised the BJP over the scandal involving its ally JD(S)’s leader. 

PRAJWAL REVANNA SCANDAL

A sexual harassment and stalking case was lodged against Prajwal, grandson of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, and his father HD Revanna. The complaint was filed by their cook, who accused Revanna of sexually harassing her and of having 'vulgar conversations' with her daughter via video calls. She expressed concerns about threats to her family's lives.

The Karnataka Congress government formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the allegations against Prajwal after explicit videos, allegedly showing him sexually abusing multiple women, surfaced in public. Prajwal, who contested in the Hassan Lok Sabha elections on April 26, reportedly fled the country as the videos emerged. 

The JD(S) leader in his first statement after the scandal said that “truth will prevail soon”. He said he communicated to the CID that he is not in Bengaluru and asked for 7 days to appear before the agency.