The family of contractor Santhosh Patil, who allegedly died by suicide, said on Thursday, April 14, that they are not bothered about the resignation of Karnataka Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Minister KS Eshwarappa against whom police have booked a case for abetting the suicide and demanded his arrest. Eshwarappa announced his resignation as Minister, as a political furore erupted. He will be submitting the resignation letter to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday, April 15.
"...three names are mentioned in the FIR as A1, A2, A3. The police department is investigating and they will have to arrest the three...we want arrest, we have never asked for resignation. Resignation is left to the government and him (Eshwarappa). We want the arrest of the accused persons," Santhosh Patil's brother Prashant Patil told reporters in Belagavi.
Reacting to Eshwarappa's resignation, he said the family is not bothered about it. "...what my brother had mentioned in the WhatsApp message, same thing I had mentioned in my complaint, and all the three accused mentioned in the FIR must be arrested," he added.
Santhosh Patil, a Belagavi-based contractor, was found dead at a hotel in Udupi on Tuesday, weeks after accusing Eshwarappa, who is also a senior BJP leader, of corruption. In a purported suicide note in the form of a WhatsApp message, Patil had blamed Eshwarappa for his death. Based on a complaint from Patil's relative, Udupi town police booked Eshwarappa for abetting the suicide.
The FIR lists Eshwarappa, his aides Basavaraj and Ramesh as A1 (accused number 1), A2 and A3 respectively. Prashant Patil also demanded the payment of the bill for the developmental work undertaken by his brother, compensation and a government job to his widow.
Santhosh Patil had last month complained to Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh stating that he was yet to be paid Rs 4 crore for road works undertaken in the Hindalga village, and had accused Eshwarappa's aides of demanding commission for the payment.
Meanwhile, the state Congress too said on Thursday that a resignation is not sufficient and demanded that the BJP leader must be arrested immediately.
Speaking to reporters, state Congress President D.K. Shivakumar said that Eshwarappa will not keep his words. "Our struggle won't stop with his resignation. The FIR speaks about many facts relating to corruption. He must be booked under Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and he must be arrested immediately," Shivakumar said.
Opposition leader Siddaramaiah demanded that it is a 'heinous crime' and non-bailable offence. "In all heinous crimes, the accused persons are arrested immediately. But Eshwarappa has not been arrested yet. All are equal before the law," Siddaramaiah said. "By deciding to submit his resignation, Eshwarappa has realised his mistakes. First he claimed he did not know Santhosh at all. Did he lodge a defamation case against him without knowing Santhosh at all," Siddaramaiah asked.
With IANS and PTI inputs