NEW DELHI, April 13: The Dupe Town police on Wednesday booked the Karnataka Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister K.S. Eshwarappa, his two aides Basavaraj and Ramesh, and others for abatement to suicide (Section 306 of Indian Penal Code) of contractor Santosh K. Patil, even as the minister insisted he would “definitely not resign.”
The 36-year-old contractor from Hindalga in Belagavi district was found dead in a room of a lodge in Udupi on Tuesday. The case was booked following a complaint by the contractor’s brother Prashant Goudappa Patil who came to Udupi on Tuesday night along with other members of the family of the deceased.
In the complaint, Prashant said Hindalga gram panchayat members and a religious leader met Eshwarappa in Bengaluru in connection with pending work on road, sewage and other development projects that were taken up for the impending annual fair of Laxmidevi temple in 2020-21. Mr. Eshwarappa asked the gram panchayat members to go ahead with the projects and assured grant of money for the same.
Santosh Patil and other contractors went ahead with the work, which were worth more than ₹4 crore, by investing their own money. Later, when approached for payment of their bills, Eshwarappa’s aides Basavaraj and Ramesh allegedly demanded commission of 40%. Santosh Patil filed a complaint through the contractors’ association and also gave a statement to mediapersons about the alleged demand of commission by Eshwarappa and his aides.
On April 11, Santosh Patil sent messages to a few of his friends holding Eshwarappa and his aides responsible for ending his life, Prashant said in his complaint. Earlier, the Udupi Town police had registered a case of unnatural death under Section 176 of IPC.
A delegation of Congress leaders, led by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president D.K. Shivakumar, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah, and Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Legislative Council B.K. Hariprasad, met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot. They submitted a memorandum demanding that Eshwarappa be dropped from the Cabinet. They have also demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident.
Soon after their arrival in Udupi on Tuesday night, Prashant and a relative demanded the arrest of Eshwarappa and his two aides. “They harassed my brother. Without action against them, we will not take custody of my brother’s body,” Prashant told reporters. The Udupi Town police had sealed room no. 207 of the lodge where Santosh Patil’s body was found on Tuesday while waiting for the arrival of his family members. Santosh had checked into the lodge with his friends Prashant Shetty and Santosh Medappa on April 11 evening.
Reacting to Congress demand for his resignation, Eshwarappa said, “Santosh Patil wanted payment for his work without norms. I want to ask the Congress, did you, when in power, release payment without a work order,” the minister questioned. “If they are asking for my resignation, I will definitely not give my resignation.” He questioned how a WhatsApp message could be treated as a “death note” and said it could be typed by anybody.
(Manas Dasgupta)
