The Ministry of External Affairs said that no political clearance was sought from or given by the government to MP Prajwal Revanna, who travelled to Germany on a diplomatic passport. Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of former Prime Minister and JDS patriarch HD Deve Gowda, went to Frankfurt, Germany on April 26.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated on Thursday that no visa was provided for Prajwal Revanna, a Janata Dal (Secular) MP from Karnataka's Hassan, for his trip to Germany. Several videos allegedly depicting sexual activities involving Prajwal Revanna, grandson of former Prime Minister Deve Gowda, surfaced on social media. Following this, the Karnataka government formed a Special Investigation (SIT) team to investigate the matter.
Randhir Jaiswal, the Ministry's spokesperson, stated on Thursday that "no political clearance was either sought from or issued by MEA in respect of the said MP's travel to Germany".
On JDS MP Prajwal Revanna fleeing to Germany
— No political clearance from MEA was sought or issued
— Diplomatic passport holders need not require visa to visit Germany
— Revanna has diplomatic passport pic.twitter.com/JxxcObhger
"No visa note was issued either. No visa is required for diplomatic passport holders to travel to Germany. The Ministry has also not issued any visa note for any other country for the said MP... Yes, he travelled on a diplomatic passport." the MEA spokesperson added.
On Thursday, Karnataka Home Minister Dr. G Parameshwara said that a lookout notice had been issued to arrest Prajwal Revanna. As he is currently abroad, the Hassan MP has requested a further seven days to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the case. However, Karnataka's home minister stated that there is no mechanism for granting more than 24 hours.
"We issued a lookout alert shortly after learning that Prajwal Revanna had gone overseas. We have notified all ports and airports of the lookout notice," the Minister told reporters.
"Our SIT members are seeking legal advice on whether to grant the accused time. The SIT will proceed to arrest him because there is no provision for more than 24 hours," Parameshwara said, adding that a woman has submitted a police report accusing Prajwal Revanna and his father of sexual harassment.