The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine the Karnataka government's challenge to a Karnataka High Court order that quashed the charge of outraging a woman's modesty under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against JD(S) MLA HD Revanna in a sexual harassment case filed by his former domestic help.
A Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K. Vinod Chandran issued notice to Revanna and directed him to file a counter affidavit on the State government's appeal.
During the hearing, the Bench questioned the State over the delay in challenging the High Court's November 19, 2025 order.
The court asked the government why it had not appealed the order earlier after the Section 354 charge was dropped and told it to "have some discipline".
The Bench also noted that the complainant had levelled separate allegations against the father-son duo of HD Revanna and his son, former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.
The case against HD Revanna emerged after multiple rape and sexual abuse cases were registered against Prajwal Revanna, who has since been convicted in one of the four cases against him. One of the complainants in those cases later accused HD Revanna of sexual harassment.
The allegations against Prajwal Revanna came to light after pen drives containing explicit videos allegedly involving him surfaced in Hassan ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
In its November 19 order, the High Court quashed the Section 354 IPC charge against HD Revanna but retained the charge under Section 354A (sexual harassment), holding that the allegations disclosed an offence of sexual harassment rather than outraging a woman's modesty.
The High Court also directed the trial court to examine whether the delay in filing the complaint could be condoned under Section 468 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, as Section 354A carries a maximum sentence of three years and is subject to the limitation period prescribed under the law.
While refusing to quash the FIR in its entirety, the High Court observed that charges against HD Revanna should be framed strictly on the basis of the complainant's original statement and pointed to discrepancies between the initial complaint and the subsequent police report, particularly regarding allegations against Prajwal Revanna.
Following the High Court's order, an additional chief judicial magistrate in Hassan discharged HD Revanna from the sexual harassment case on December 29, 2025.
(With inputs from PTI)
