Prajwal Revanna's Rape Conviction Taints JD(S) Patriarch Deve Gowda's Six-Decade-Old Legacy

Last Updated:August 03, 2025, 08:00 IST

Deve Gowda publicly stated that his grandson should face the strictest punishment if proven guilty—a stance he reiterated in a strongly worded letter to Prajwal

Deve Gowda, a seasoned politician who proudly called himself Mannina Maga, or son of the soil, feels betrayed. File pic/PTI

For former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, the conviction of his elder grandson Prajwal Revanna is a personal and political blow. Known for his unblemished political career and personal life, Deve Gowda is deeply affected by Prajwal Revanna’s rape case.

Even the letter Deve Gowda wrote to Prajwal when he was absconding in Germany was harsh. “Surrender or face the wrath of your family," Gowda had urged Prajwal, who refused to return to India to face charges of sexual abuse by several women.

Prajwal Revanna, then the NDA candidate from Karnataka’s Hassan Lok Sabha seat, fled to Germany on April 27, a day after polling concluded, as he was re-contesting his seat.

Deve Gowda publicly stated that his grandson should face the strictest punishment if proven guilty—a stance he reiterated in a strongly worded letter to Prajwal. “It took me some time to recover from the shock and pain he has inflicted on me, my entire family, my colleagues, friends, and party workers. I have already said that he should be given the harshest punishment under the law if found guilty," Deve Gowda wrote in that letter.

Many close to the family believe this won’t be the end of Deve Gowda’s political dynasty. His sons—HD Revanna, a former state minister, HD Kumaraswamy, former Karnataka CM and now union minister, and Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy—remain active in politics.

Kumaraswamy and his family have distanced themselves from the Revanna family. Kumaraswamy, a union minister in the Narendra Modi government, and his son Nikhil have contested elections thrice but lost all of them. “What has happened is very unfortunate. We never thought this would happen, but let’s say that justice has been delivered," said a senior JD(S) MLA to News18.

Deve Gowda, a seasoned politician who proudly called himself Mannina Maga, or son of the soil, feels betrayed. Another senior JD(S) leader who worked closely with Deve Gowda said the nonagenarian did not deserve this. “Whatever happens, JD(S) is Deve Gowda’s party, and the grandchildren came later. He did not deserve this. Those in the JD(S) know that JD(S) is Deve Gowda and Deve Gowda is JD(S). We stand by Deve Gowda," said a senior party member.

During the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, when Prajwal first contested his debut election, Deve Gowda declared his elder grandson as his political successor. Groomed as a rising star in Karnataka’s powerful Gowda family, Prajwal’s fall has been dramatic. He now stands as a convicted rapist.

“Prajwal and Nikhil are like my two eyes," Deve Gowda told this reporter during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls—a declaration that his grandsons were to carry forward the JD(S), after his sons HD Revanna and HD Kumaraswamy had already taken political charge. “Prajwal was always considered to be the political heir to his grandfather," said Suresh Gowda, a JD(S) worker from Hassan. “He was also regarded as the politically sharpest grandson," echoed several party workers and residents in Hassan.

Deve Gowda’s decision to field Prajwal from Hassan and move to Tumkur in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections was the first clear sign that Prajwal was his chosen heir. Gowda shifted to Tumkur to facilitate a safer election for himself, while Prajwal took his place in the family’s home turf. He was renominated again in 2024—that was the level of trust Gowda had in his elder grandson.

The 33-year-old former MP from Hassan and suspended JD(S) leader was convicted by a special court in one of four rape and sexual abuse cases filed against him and awarded life imprisonment until the end of his life. The case involved the sexual assault of a 48-year-old domestic worker at the family’s Gannikada farmhouse in Holenarasipura in 2021.

His sudden departure—just days before the allegations became public—raised suspicions. A Blue Corner Notice was issued by Interpol at the behest of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and an arrest warrant was issued by a Special Court. He was investigated on charges of sexual abuse, which triggered a national uproar. Allegations included rape, sexual assault, disrobing women, and forcibly videographing sexual acts to intimidate the victims.

In his letter, Deve Gowda’s pain and sense of betrayal were palpable. He recounted the shock and pain inflicted upon his family, colleagues, and supporters before reiterating that if Prajwal was found guilty, he should face the harshest legal penalties. This stance was also supported by Gowda’s son and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy. Prajwal is the son of Gowda’s other son, HD Revanna.

Deve Gowda’s letter to Prajwal culminated in a stern ultimatum: return to India and submit to the legal process. Gowda warned that failing to heed this command would result in Prajwal facing the wrath of his family and complete isolation. He vowed that neither he nor any family member would interfere in the legal proceedings. “At this juncture, I can do only one thing. I can issue a stern warning to Prajwal and ask him to return from wherever he is and surrender before the police. He should subject himself to the legal process. This is not an appeal that I am making, it is a warning that I am issuing. If he does not heed this warning, he will have to face my anger and the anger of all his family members. The law will take care of the accusations against him, but not listening to the family will ensure his total isolation. If he has any respect left for me, he has to return immediately," Deve Gowda wrote, revealing how deeply he felt betrayed by his grandson.

For a former PM who stood in Parliament in 1997 while facing a no-confidence motion against him, Deve Gowda said he would rise from the ashes like a phoenix. But that was to save his political career. What happened now was personal—an indelible scar in a political career spanning six decades.

Rohini Swamy

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t...Read More

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t...

Read More

Location :

First Published:

August 03, 2025, 08:00 IST

News politics Prajwal Revanna's Rape Conviction Taints JD(S) Patriarch Deve Gowda's Six-Decade-Old Legacy

Read More