Prajwal’s life takes drastic turn as life sentence begins with prison labour, routine

Bengaluru: Former MP Prajwal Revanna, convicted of rape in the high-profile KR Nagar case, has officially begun his life sentence and transitioned from an undertrial to a convict at Bengaluru’s Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.

With this shift, Revanna’s lifestyle is set to change drastically as he enters the routine and rules of prison life.Prajwal Revanna, who had been lodged in the prison for the past 14 months during trial, has now been formally designated a life convict and assigned prisoner number 15528.

Starting August 2, he must comply fully with the prison’s code, which includes wearing white prison attire, performing daily assigned labour, and adhering to all convict rules.

On his first morning as a convicted prisoner, Prajwal Revanna remained largely quiet, completing his morning routine and receiving poha upma as breakfast. As per prison norms, every life convict is required to work for eight hours daily. Inmates can choose from tasks such as gardening, bakery work, dairy maintenance, vegetable cultivation, handicrafts, or carpentry. Based on his choice, he will be paid a fixed wage, beginning at ₹524 per month as an unskilled laborer.

With time, based on performance and training, he may be promoted to semi-skilled or skilled categories, earning slightly higher wages.

The court’s judgment has changed not only his legal status but the course of his life. Prajwal Revanna is now required to follow all the conditions imposed on life-term convicts, and his existence will be confined to the prison routine indefinitely.

The court sentenced Prajwal Revanna under multiple serious charges, including IPC Sections 376(2)(K) and 376(2)(N), for repeatedly raping a woman who worked as domestic help. He has also been penalised under IPC 354(B), 354(A), 354(C), 201, 506 and IT Act Section 66(E), with varying terms of imprisonment and financial penalties.

The total fine imposed on him amounts to ₹11.6 lakh, of which ₹11.25 lakh has been ordered to be paid to the survivor as compensation. This is among the most severe verdicts against a politician in recent memory. While regular life sentences can be reviewed after 14 years for remission or pardon, this court has specified imprisonment “for the rest of his life,” eliminating the possibility of early release unless a rare gubernatorial or government pardon is granted.

Moreover, the time Prajwal Revanna spent in custody so far does not count toward his sentence, as he was not arrested directly under this case but produced on a body warrant.

With his transfer to the convicts’ barracks complete, and his duties as a sentenced inmate beginning, Prajwal Revanna’s life — once centered around politics and public service — is now marked by labor, confinement, and a future inside prison walls.