Former JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna and his former prison cellmate Prathap Rai have been remanded to two days of police custody in connection with the alleged unauthorised use of a mobile phone inside Bengaluru’s Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.
A Bengaluru court passed the order on Tuesday after police sought custody to investigate how the phone entered the high security prison, who supplied it and how it was used inside the facility.
Mobile Phone Recovered During Prison Raid
The case came to light after the Central Crime Branch conducted a search at the prison on August 11 and reportedly recovered a blue smartphone from Revanna’s cell.
Police said the phone had applications including WhatsApp and Facebook installed on it. The device was subsequently sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for examination.
Investigators are also looking into the SIM card allegedly used with the phone. According to police, the SIM was obtained from Andhra Pradesh and the device may have been used to communicate with Revanna’s family members and lawyers.
Both Revanna and Rai have denied owning the phone during the preliminary inquiry. Rai reportedly told investigators that the device did not belong to him, while Revanna also denied having any connection with it.
Police to Question Revanna and Rai
The Parappana Agrahara police have been given two days to question the two accused and establish who brought the phone into the prison.
A senior police officer said Revanna would be taken to an isolated location and “thoroughly” interrogated.
Investigators will question the two men separately and are expected to examine whether anyone else helped bring the phone into the prison or assisted Revanna in using it.
Police are also investigating an alleged pen drive that was reportedly brought into Revanna’s cell. They will seek to establish who delivered it, when it entered the prison and how it reached his cell.
Another part of the probe concerns a piece of paper containing several phone numbers. Investigators will try to identify the numbers and determine who made calls to whom.
In the FIR, Prathap Rai has been named Accused No. 1, while Prajwal Revanna has been named Accused No. 2.
Why Is Prajwal Revanna in Prison?
Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and son of JD(S) MLA H D Revanna, is serving a life sentence in a rape case involving a former house help.
A Special Court for People’s Representatives convicted him in August 2025 for raping the woman at a farmhouse in Holenarasipura in Karnataka’s Hassan district. The court sentenced him to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh, with Rs 7 lakh ordered as compensation for the survivor.
Revanna is also facing three other rape cases, which are pending trial.
