Karnataka minister K. S. Eshwarappa, against whom a case has been registered for abetment of suicide after the death of a civil contractor, has refused to resign amid indications that his party, the BJP, would like him to step aside in the interest of a fair probe.
Sources said that Eshwarappa, the state Rural Development and Panchayat Raj minister has been named as the first accused in the case.
"If they are asking for my resignation, I will definitely not give my resignation," Eshwarappa said, according to ndtv.com. "Santhosh Patil (the contractor) wanted payment for his work without norms. I want to ask the Congress, did you, when in power, release payment without a work order," he asked.
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.
Arun Singh, BJP national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka, said a decision will be taken soon. "We will definitely take a decision on this".
"However," he added, "it's important to know who all were involved. There are many angles to the entire case," he said, reports ndtv.com
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said he will hold a one-on-one discussion with Eshwarappa before taking a decision on the need for him to resign.
"I don't know what he said about resignation. It will be clear when we speak directly. Accordingly, we will take a decision," the Chief Minister said.
In the complaint, Prashanth Patil contented his brother had undertaken works worth Rs 4 crore in Hindalaga village. Santhosh had invested his money in the project and the bill for the work was pending.
“Rural development and panchayati raj minister K.S. Eshwarappa, who is responsible for my death, should get appropriate punishment,” the message in Kannada read. The note urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, chief minister Basavaraj Bommai and former chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa to help his wife and child.
Santhosh had visited minister Eshwarappa several times and had pleaded him to release the amount. But his close aides Basavaraj and Ramesh were demanding 40 percent commission, the complaint alleged.
Patil had checked into the hotel with two friends on Monday. His friends, who were in another room, alerted the hotel staff when Patil failed to respond to knocks. He was found dead when the staff opened the room with a spare key.
Police have registered a case of unnatural death and suspect that he consumed some poisonous substance. The results of forensic examinations are awaited.
Patil had earlier travelled to Delhi where he met Union rural development minister Giriraj Singh, BJP general secretary in charge of Karnataka Arun Singh and party organising secretary and RSS leader B.L. Santosh. Giriraj’s ministry had sought a clarification from Eshwarappa’s ministry but it is not known if the party had taken up the issue with the Karnataka leadership.
A former member of the RSS-backed ABVP, Patil later became a member of the BJP and an office-bearer of the Sangh parivar outfit Hindu Vahini.
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.
