Interim anticipatory bail has been granted to three people linked to the Janata Dal (Secular)’s media and social media operations, after a Bengaluru court observed that interim protection on stringent conditions would not hamper the probe into a sting video linking former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to a honey-trap controversy.
Bengaluru: Noting that a co-accused facing similar allegations had already been granted interim anticipatory bail, a Bengaluru sessions court on Thursday, October 29, granted interim pre-arrest bail to Prajwal Prasad, a New Delhi-based media consultant associated with the JD(S), and party social media functionaries Chandan HS and Mohan Gowda K. The case was registered on former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah‘s complaint over an allegedly fake sting video [Interim anticipatory bail applications of Prajwal Prasad, Chandan HS and Mohan Gowda K].
Separate orders allowing the three interim applications were passed by Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge Shankarappa Nimbanna Kalkani.
Why the Court found interim protection workable
Weighing the applications, the Court noted that a co-accused facing similar allegations had already been granted interim anticipatory bail. Interim protection on stringent conditions, it observed, would not hamper the investigation. It added:
“Otherwise, the personal liberty of the petitioner guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution would be frustrated.”
The conditions on which protection rests
Each petitioner is to be released on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with one surety for the like sum in the event of arrest. They must cooperate with the investigating officer and must not tamper with prosecution witnesses. They must also surrender if their main anticipatory bail applications are rejected.
The complaint and the notices
On October 6, Siddaramaiah lodged a police complaint alleging defamation and blackmail. It concerns a purported sting video that appeared on September 27 on a social media account titled ‘Karnataka Honey Trap’ and was then aired by some local television channels.
Fearing arrest after the investigating police issued them notices under Section 94 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), the three petitioners approached the court.
What the petitioners submitted
Their names, the petitioners contended, did not figure in the FIR, and they had been falsely implicated during the investigation. They submitted that they were neither the owners, creators nor administrators of the ‘Karnataka Honey Trap’ YouTube channel, which they said was created and run by someone else.
In the same case, Power TV Managing Director Rakesh Shetty secured interim anticipatory bail on October 23, while Delhi-based Ritesh Pandey was arrested and later granted bail. On October 13, a Bengaluru court granted an ex parte ad interim injunction restraining 42 media organisations, digital platforms and others from publishing or circulating videos linking Siddaramaiah to the honey-trap controversy.
The allegations in the complaint are yet to be tested, the Court has expressed no view on the merits, and the petitioners are entitled to the presumption of innocence.
What an interim order does, and what it leaves open
Interim anticipatory bail is a holding measure. It protects a person from arrest until the main application is decided, without any finding on guilt. Courts weigh whether custody is needed for the investigation against the right to personal liberty under Article 21, and parity with co-accused who have already received relief is a recognised factor in that balance.
Conditions on cooperation and non-interference with witnesses keep the investigation into the complaint on course. Whether the petitioners had any role in creating or spreading the video is left to the investigation and the hearing of the main applications.
Case: Interim anticipatory bail applications of Prajwal Prasad, Chandan HS and Mohan Gowda K
Court: Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge Shankarappa Nimbanna Kalkani, Bengaluru
Date of Order: October 29, 2026
Appearances: Advocate Suyog Herele E for Chandan HS and Mohan Gowda K; Advocate Madhav B. Kashyap for Prajwal Prasad