Prajwal Revanna, an NDA candidate and the current Hassan MP who traveled to Germany last month, was detained shortly after midnight when he arrived at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, Karnataka, on suspicion of rape.

A Karnataka Police Special Investigation Team (SIT), the Bengaluru police, and immigration authorities prepared to arrest the MP from the airport itself after receiving information about his arrival from Interpol on Thursday afternoon.

The Janata Dal-Secular leader – who flew back aboard Lufthansa flight LH0764 – was taken into custody by members of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) tasked with investigating the charges against him.

On Friday at 12.49 am, the flight carrying Prajwal touched down in Bengaluru. Interpol provided information to Karnataka authorities indicating that the aircraft was due to take off on Thursday at 12.05 pm local time (3.35 pm IST) from Munich, Germany, as reported by The Indian Express.

The NDA candidate for the Hassan Lok Sabha seat, Revanna, had fled the nation in April after graphic videos of him abusing several women sexually began to circulate in Karnataka. After Hassan cast his ballot in the second round of the Lok Sabha elections on April 26, he departed for Germany the following day.

Three rape cases have been registered against Prajwal so far.

Earlier this week, he released a video message, saying he would appear on May 31 before the probe team and cooperate with the inquiry. He also claimed that the cases against him were false.

Prajwal said he went into “depression and isolation” after the news of the sex tapes broke out and claimed that “political forces” were at work in Hassan.

“Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders started campaigning against me in open forums, and politically conspiring against me. I went into depression and isolation,” he had said in the video.