Political Fallout Escalates as Karnataka Congress Expels Kripa Alva Amid Video Scandal
Bengaluru, November 9 – The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) has taken the drastic step of expelling former Congress General Secretary Kripa Alva for six years, citing her alleged participation in a sting operation that targeted senior party leaders, including former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
The party’s decision came on the same day that the Central Crime Branch (CCB) served Alva with a notice ordering her to appear for questioning on Monday. The CCB has asked her to bring her mobile phone and laptop for forensic analysis, linking the request to the ongoing investigation of a politically charged video.
Alva had arrived back in Bengaluru on the night of November 7 after an overseas trip, landing at Kempegowda International Airport. Because a Look‑Out Circular had been issued against her, immigration officials held her at the airport and handed her over to CCB cyber‑inspector Satish. She was not taken into custody as she already possessed an interim bail order from the court.
KPCC vice‑president M. Narayanaswamy explained that the party’s expulsion was necessary to prevent “negative publicity and media embarrassment.” He described Alva’s alleged involvement in the sting as equivalent to anti‑party activity.
Siddaramaiah had previously accused Alva of being behind a defamatory video that portrayed him in a sexual‑exploitation scenario. A court order subsequently barred any media outlet from broadcasting the clip. Bengaluru police, however, labeled the sexual‑exploitation narrative in the video as a “fabricated and deliberately concoced story,” noting that no evidence supports the claims made in the footage.
During a session court hearing, Alva and the cameraman Prashant Kumar maintained that they had no part in uploading the video to YouTube. The footage was reportedly shot in 2023 but was massively circulated online in September 2026.
The controversy has deepened fissures within the Karnataka Congress. Siddaramaiah publicly alleged that certain party insiders were complicit in the scandal and has approached senior Congress leaders to express his unease about being targeted despite his long service as a public representative.
Union minister and JD(S) stalwart H. D. Kumaraswamy demanded Alva’s arrest, accusing Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar of involvement. Kumaraswamy asserted that the video was filmed in February 2023 when Shivakumar was the state Congress president and pointed to a “history of using obscene material against political opponents.”
Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemandar Kumar Singh revealed that the mobile phone used to upload the video on September 26 had been swapped to Kumaraswamy’s Delhi residence. An investigation traced the device to Ritesh Pandey, arrested in Delhi, who said he purchased the phone from a Karol Bagh shop alongside Vinod Sharma on the instruction of Prajal Prasad, a member of Kumaraswamy’s social‑media team. The handset was then delivered to Kumaraswamy’s official residence and handed over to Prajal Prasad.
Authorities continue to examine the chain of custody for the digital evidence as the case proceeds through the courts.