Prajwal Revanna’s phone had 2,000 obscene photos, 40 videos; mother knew about his amorous deeds

The former car driver of former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna testified in court on Monday in the sex tape case and said that he had found over 2,000 explicit pictures and 40-50 videos of women in the phone of the then Janata Dal (Secular) MP, who is an accused in four rape and sexual harassment cases.

He also told the court that the former MP’s mother, Bhavani Revanna, had been apprised of his wayward behaviour.

The driver, N Kartik, 34, from Kadavinakotte village in Holenarasipura, testified before a special court for elected representatives in Bengaluru and said that Bhavani knew about Prajwal’s physical relationships with many women and his habit of recording their private moments on his mobile phone.

The revelations came to light when special public prosecutor Ashok Nayak examined Kartik.

“One day, Prajwal left his mobile phone in the car and went to his girlfriend’s house near Ashoka Pillar in Jayanagar. Out of curiosity, I browsed his mobile phone as I knew the password. Upon opening the phone, I found several videos involving political party workers, domestic helps, and others. I transferred the pictures and videos to my mobile,” Kartik told the court.

Prajwal’s mother regretted her son’s ways, counselled him

He further said that he brought this to the notice of Prajwal’s mother, Bhavani, but she did not believe him initially. However, when he showed her the photographs and videos, she asked him to send them to her and regretted her son’s ways. She also requested Kartik not to divulge the information to anyone.

Bhavani then counselled Prajwal, but he did not speak with her for nearly two months, wanting to know who had shared the information. Finally, when she revealed Kartik’s name, Prajwal reprimanded the driver.

Karthik was the whistleblower who facilitated the initiation of multiple cases of rape and sexual harassment against Prajwal last year.

Karthik appeared in court as prosecution witness number 10 in the trial of the first of four cases of rape and sexual harassment registered by the SIT of the Karnataka Police after the explicit videos and pictures of the alleged sexual assaults by Prajwal emerged in the public domain in April 2024.

The trial in the first case began on May 2 as a former domestic worker at the farmhouse of the Revanna family told the court about Prajwal’s alleged assaults on her during in-camera proceedings in the special court.

The case was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by a woman on May 8, 2024. The woman was rescued on May 5 from a farmhouse near Mysuru, where she was allegedly kept in confinement after being identified in videos of sexual assaults recorded by Prajwal on his phone.

The former MP is also named as an accused in a case of sexual assault on a cook and the alleged sexual harassment of her daughter.