Bengaluru: JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda on Thursday told his absconding grandson and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna to return to India immediately and surrender to the police in the sleaze videos case, warning that this is not an “appeal” and he should not test his patience.
Deve Gowda’s stern warning comes three days after H D Kumaraswamy made a similar appeal to Prajwal over the incident that has roiled the regional party and put it on the back foot.
I have issued a warning to @iPrajwalRevanna to return immediately from wherever he is and subject himself to the legal process. He should not test my patience any further. pic.twitter.com/kCMuNJOvAo
— H D Deve Gowda (@H_D_Devegowda) May 23, 2024
“At this juncture, I can do only one thing,” said Deve Gowda in a letter posted on X. “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.”
The former prime minister made it clear that “it is not an appeal” but “a warning” that he is issuing.
“If he does not heed to this warning, he will have to face my anger and 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,” reads the post.
Gowda reiterated that Prajwal should be given the harshest punishment if he is found guilty. “My son and former CM H D Kumaraswamy has advocated this line since the day the scandal broke,” Gowda stated.
Gowda also ruled out any interference in the inquiry. “There is no emotion in this regard in my mind whatsoever, there is only the cause of justice for those who have suffered as a result of his alleged actions and misdeeds,” he wrote. He mentioned that it is important for him to earn back the trust of people who stood by him for the last 60 years of his political life.
Gowda stated that it took some time for him to recover from the shock and pain. “People have used harshest words against me and my family in the last few weeks. I am aware of it, I do not wish to criticise them. I will not try and argue with them that they should have waited until all the facts were found out,” added.
Saying that he is not aware of Prajwal’s activities, Gowda said that he cannot convince people otherwise. “I have no desire to shield him. I cannot convince people that I am not aware of his movements and that I was not aware of his foreign trips. I believe in answering my conscience, god and I know the almighty knows the truth,” Gowda said.
However, he said he will not comment on political conspiracies, provocations and falsehoods that have been spread in recent weeks.