Media consultant appears before Bengaluru police in sting video case
Prajwal Prasad appeared for questioning regarding the alleged fabrication of a video targeting former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Media consultant Prajwal Prasad, associated with the office of Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy, appeared before the Bengaluru Central Crime Branch (CCB) on Tuesday. He attended the CCB headquarters in response to an investigator notice regarding the alleged fabrication and circulation of a sting video targeting former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, according to reports by The Hindu and Deccan Chronicle.
Prasad had reportedly been absconding and later secured interim anticipatory bail. The CCB is questioning him to establish the planning, funding, and circumstances behind the video's production and circulation.
Ritesh Pandey, who was arrested on October 24 for uploading the videos, stated during interrogation that Prasad instructed him to purchase a specific mobile phone used in the operation. Pandey and Vinod Sharma allegedly purchased the handset in Delhi's Karol Bagh area and handed it to Prasad at Kumaraswamy's official residence in New Delhi, according to Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh.
Bengaluru police have described the viral video as an orchestrated and fabricated narrative. They stated that statements from individuals featured in the videos failed to substantiate the allegations.
Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda alleged on Monday that Kumaraswamy masterminded the release of the video and that his official residence was used to execute the job. KPCC spokesperson M Lakshmana also alleged that Kumaraswamy scripted the operation and claimed financial transactions totalling Rs 29.30 lakh occurred among Prasad, Pandey, and Sharma.