Janata Dal (Secular) MP Prajwal Revanna, embroiled in a sex tape scandal and absent from the country since the controversy emerged, was arrested early Friday morning upon his arrival in Bengaluru from Germany. The Karnataka Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) apprehended Revanna and took him to the CID office for interrogation.

In a move that appeared to carry symbolic weight, a team of five female police officers, led by a woman IPS officer, was dispatched to arrest the JD(S) MP. Revanna, who is running for reelection as an NDA candidate from the Hassan Lok Sabha seat, had fled the country in April after explicit video clips purportedly showing him sexually abusing multiple women circulated in Karnataka.

He participated in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on April 26. Since then, three rape cases have been filed against Revanna.

Earlier this week, Revanna released a video statement, promising to appear before the investigation team on May 31 and cooperate fully with the inquiry. He asserted that the allegations against him were unfounded.

In the video, Revanna explained that he had gone into "depression and isolation" following the scandal, attributing the controversy to "political forces" at play in Hassan. He accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other senior Congress figures of campaigning against him and conspiring politically, which he claimed drove him into his period of seclusion.