Contractor death: Karnataka minister booked for 'abetment of suicide'

A case has been registered against Karnataka Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) minister K S Eshwarappa for abetment of suicide in connection with the death of Santhosh Patil, a civil contractor, police said on Wednesday.

A case has been registered against Karnataka Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) minister K S Eshwarappa for abetment of suicide in connection with the death of a civil contractor, police said on Wednesday.

Civil contractor Santhosh Patil died by suicide, leaving a death note saying K S Eeshwarappa was wholly responsible for his death.

They said Eshwarappa has been named as the first accused in the case. The FIR was registered based on a complaint from Prashanth Patil, brother of Santhosh Patil, who had levelled bribery charges against the senior minister earlier. Patil was found dead at a lodge in Udupi in a case of suspected suicide.

The complaint by Prashanth named minister Eshwarappa and his staff members Ramesh and Basavaraj as the accused. In the complaint, Prashanth Patil contented his brother had undertaken works worth ₹4 crore in Hindalaga village. Santhosh had invested his money in the project and the bill for the work was pending.

Santhosh had visited minister Eshwarappa several times and had pleaded him to release the amount. But his close aid Basavaraj and Ramesh were demanding 40 percent commission, the complaint alleged. Meanwhile, a forensic team examined the evidence at the spot where Patil was found dead.

Patil's death had on Tuesday triggered a major political row with the Congress demanding the ouster of Eshwarappa even as its senior leader Rahul Gandhi had targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and state Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai over the issue.

After a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against Karnataka minister KS Eshwarappa in connection with the death of the contractor, CM Bommai said on Wednesday he will discuss the issue with his fellow Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader.

Meanwhile, Congress delegation including DK Shivakumar and former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah submitted a letter to Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot demanding the sacking of state minister K S Eshwarappa over contractor Santosh Patil's death, ANI reported.

Reacting to the news of the contractor's death, Eshwarappa ha said, “I have no idea what death note he has written, why he has made these accusations. I do not know, we cannot even ask him.”