Pornographic videos found on phone seized from jailed ex-MP Prajwal Revanna

During the inspection, a prohibited mobile phone, SIM card, charger and notebook were found in a cell.

BENGALURU: Multiple pornographic videos were found on a mobile phone seized from jailed former Janata Dal (Secular) MP Prajwal Revanna, police sources told TOI on Saturday. Revanna, the former Hassan MP who is currently serving a sentence after being convicted in a sexual assault case, allegedly received a mobile phone, SIM card, charger and pen drive in a coordinated smuggling operation involving five others, including a jail staffer, police said. All five people have been arrested in connection with the case, police said.

Investigators said Revanna allegedly paid Rs 70,000 to have the mobile phone smuggled into the prison and another Rs 30,000 for the SIM card. Jail warden Prakash Gawade allegedly handed the phone to Revanna personally. Undertrial prisoner Mohammed Tausif, who is accused in the DJ Halli case, allegedly concealed the SIM card in his mouth and passed it to Revanna, police said. Gawade allegedly handed over the charger and pen drive to Revanna during subsequent visits, investigators said. The jail staffer had previously been arrested and suspended on charges of allegedly smuggling ganja into the prison.

In August, Central Crime Branch officers raided Revanna’s barrack and seized the mobile phone, SIM card, charger and pen drive. An FIR was subsequently registered against Revanna and his co-inmate Pratap Rai. Rai, however, denied any involvement, saying Revanna had been using the mobile phone even before Rai joined him in the barrack.

“While Naveen and Siddiqui arranged the phone and the Sim, Manjunath connected these men with Prajwal and Gawde. The four private persons and Prajwal said that besides paying money for mobile and Sim, they paid Rs 1 lakh (Rs 70,000 for mobile and Rs 30,000 for Sim) to Gawde,” an investigating officer told TOI.