Bengaluru, 27 May

Exactly a month after he left the country, Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna, who is facing charges of sexually abusing several women, has said he will appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing the cases against him, on 31 May.

Terming the cases against him as "false" and part of a "political conspiracy", he said he had gone into depression. "I will personally come before the SIT on Friday, May 31 at 10 am and cooperate with the investigation and also respond to it (charges). I have faith in the judiciary and I am confident that I will come out of false cases, through court," Pajwal said in a video statement that is now widely being circulated.

There was no independent confirmation from the JD(S) or the family of the suspended party MP immediately over the matter. "Let the blessings of God, people and my family be on me. I will surely appear before SIT on 31 May, Friday. After coming, I will try to put an end to all this. Keep faith in me," he added in his video statement in Kannada.

Apologising to his parents, grandfather Deve Gowda, uncle H D Kumaraswamy, people of the state, and party workers, Prajwal said, "I have come before you to share information, as I had not disclosed as to where I'm in foreign (country)."

Noting that he had sought a week to respond to the SIT notice through his 'X' account and his lawyers, Prajwal said, "Despite seeking time, the very next day Congress senior leaders including Rahul Gandhi started discussing things (about me), at public meetings." "They indulged in political conspiracy. Looking at all this, I went into depression and isolation. So, I sought your apology first and your forgiveness," he said.

Alleging that a political conspiracy was hatched against him in his constituency of Hassan too by some forces, the MP said, "As I was growing politically, to diminish me, they all got together. Looking at all these things, I was shocked, so I was a bit away. So, no one should mistake (me) for it."

Prajwal (33), the grandson of JD(S) patriarch HD Deve Gowda and the NDA candidate from Hassan Lok Sabha segment, is facing charges of sexually abusing women.

He reportedly left for Germany on April 27, a day after Hassan went to polls, and is still at large. A 'Blue Corner Notice' seeking information on his whereabouts has already been issued by Interpol, following a request by the SIT via the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

A Special Court for Elected Representatives issued an arrest warrant on May 18 against Prajwal Revanna, following an application moved by the SIT. The Congress-led Karnataka government has urged the Centre to cancel his diplomatic passport, even as it has stated that there has been no official communication from the union government over the matter yet.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has served a show cause notice to Prajwal asking why his diplomatic passport should not be cancelled as sought by the Karnataka government in view of allegations of sexual abuse against him.

The election took place on 26 April, at that time there was no case against him, and SIT was also not formed, he said. "My trip abroad on April 26 was also planned earlier. So, I left (abroad) after three or four days... when I was watching YouTube, a news channel, I learnt (about the development back home). After that SIT also issued a notice."

The scandal triggered a political storm with the ruling Congress and BJP-JD(S) engaging in a slugfest. While the Congress government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the cases, the BJP and JD(S) -- NDA partners -- have demanded that it be handed over to the CBI, and action be taken against those behind the circulation of explicit videos.

The cases of sexual abuse came to light after number of pendrives allegedly containing explicit videos involving Prajwal were reportedly circulated in Hassan, ahead of Lok Sabha polls there on 26 April.

Recently, Deve Gowda had issued a 'stern warning' to Prajwal Revanna, asking him to return to the country and face the probe into sexual abuse allegations, while asserting there will be no interference from him or other family members into the enquiry.

The JD(S) supremo reiterated that his grandson should be given the harshest punishment under the law "if found guilty". Kumaraswamy too had repeatedly appealed to his nephew Prajwal to return to the country and face the probe. JD(S) has suspended Prajwal from the party after cases against him came to light.