Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], August 13 : Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge on Thursday said action would be taken against any official found responsible in connection with rape convict and former MP Prajwal Revanna allegedly being found with a mobile phone inside a Karnataka jail, asserting that the rank of the official involved would not matter.
"We are still investigating. It does not matter who the official is; they will be taken to task. It does not matter whether it is a PC or a PSI or an ADG," Kharge said when asked whether action had been initiated against DGP Prison and Correctional Services Alok Kumar in connection with the incident.
Kharge's remarks came amid questions over prison security and accountability following reports that Revanna, who is lodged in a Karnataka jail, was found in possession of a mobile phone.
The Home Minister said the investigation was still underway and indicated that responsibility would be fixed after the facts are established.
The issue has raised questions over how a mobile phone allegedly reached a high-security prison environment and whether prison officials or personnel failed to follow established security protocols.
Kharge stressed that the government would not differentiate between officials on the basis of rank if the investigation establishes wrongdoing or negligence.
His statement comes at a time when Karnataka police and the state administration are also dealing with heightened law-and-order arrangements due to the statewide bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations over the Cauvery water issue.
Speaking about the security arrangements for the bandh, Bengaluru Rural SP Chandrakant said police personnel from the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP), District Reserve (DR) and local police had been deployed in significant numbers, particularly at sensitive locations and along the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border.
The bandh has been called in protest against the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee's directive to Karnataka to release 12,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu for 15 days.
Police have taken preventive measures to ensure that protests remain peaceful and do not disrupt public movement.
As part of the precautionary arrangements, 18 people associated with the Kannada Jagruthi Vedike were preventively detained, according to the Bengaluru Rural police.
Chandrakant said the detentions were carried out as a preventive measure and assured the public that those detained would be released once the situation returned to normal.
Despite the bandh call, vehicular movement between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu continued normally, the police official said.
"There is no need for anxiety," the police said, appealing to the public to continue with their daily activities without fear.
Security has been particularly strengthened along the Tamil Nadu border because of the sensitivity surrounding the Cauvery dispute and the possibility of protests affecting interstate movement.
Police personnel have also been deployed at other strategic locations to monitor demonstrations and respond quickly to any law-and-order situation.
The bandh has seen participation from several pro-Kannada organisations, which have opposed the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu and argued that Karnataka itself is facing drinking water and irrigation concerns.
The organisations have also been demanding long-term measures to improve Karnataka's water security, including the implementation of the Mekedatu project.
While the Cauvery issue has led to protests across Karnataka, authorities have maintained that adequate security arrangements are in place and appealed to citizens and protestors to maintain peace.
Meanwhile, the investigation into the alleged possession of a mobile phone by Revanna remains a separate matter of concern for the state prison administration.
Kharge's assurance that officials would be "taken to task" if found responsible signals that accountability will be determined after the ongoing investigation establishes how the alleged security breach occurred.
The Home Minister's statement also comes amid broader scrutiny of prison administration and security protocols in the state, with authorities expected to examine the circumstances surrounding the alleged possession of the device.