Whistleblower death: Sadananda Gowda faces angry family

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Karnataka Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda had to face the wrath of the family and friends of KAS officer S.P. Mahantesh (48), Deputy Director of Co-operative Societies’ Audit Department, Bengaluru Rural division, who died on Sunday after battling for life for five days.

The chief minister said the investigation into the murder of Mahantesh, who was attacked by unknown assailants on May 15, has been intensified and the accused would be nabbed soon. “The incident is unfortunate and has hurt the sentiments of the people and the government”, he said, adding the family would be sanctioned solatium.

The family and friends raised slogans against the government and expressed anger over its failure to protect honest officers in the state. They alleged that Gowda and Suresh Kumar were trying to hush up the case as influential people were involved in the murder. Employees of the Karnataka Cooperative Audit Service Department were angry that the investigation was going on at a snail’s pace.

The family was frustrated that the CM left without giving them any assurance. Housing minister V. Somanna too visited Mahantesh’s house.

Heartrending scenes were witnessed at the residence of Mahantesh (48) after news broke that the KAS officer died in the morning.

Mahantesh’s aged father Mr Puttannaiah (70), a retired senior government official, was consoling his wife Vijayamma (65) and receiving several relatives and friends at home. A shattered Vijayamma was worried about the fate of her daughter-in-law and two granddaughters.

Mahantesh’s wife Purnima fell unconscious and had to be administered medications and intravenous fluids when the body arrived at the house.

Several relatives, bureaucrats, colleagues and friends paid homage to the KAS officer. “His honesty took his life. Without Mahantesh, life will be extremely difficult for his parents, wife and daughters,” Nagendrappa, Mahantesh’s brother-in-law, said.

“We were thinking of shifting him to a specialty hospital, but his condition deteriorated on Saturday night forcing us to abandon the plan. The doctors told us that chances of his survival were very slim because of deep wounds and internal bleeding in the brain,” a relative said.

“Every night, Mahantesh received threat calls from unidentified people. These people have to be identified and the reason behind the calls should be investigated,” said some relatives.

“It is a big blow to officers who are honest. It is the most tragic day for all KAS officers. Such a gory end was least expected for an honest officer like Mahantesh. The assailants have hatched the plan to the last detail and covered their tracks. We are turning into another Uttar Pradesh or Bihar, where honest officers are killed mercilessly,” his colleagues said.

The last rites were conducted at the cemetery next to T.R. Mill in Chamarajpet on Sunday evening with several people in attendance.

Relatives demand CBI or CID probe

Family and friends said they lacked confidence in the police and demanded a prpbe by an independent agency, either the CBI or CID. They were upset that police has failed to make any headway in the probe. Nagarudrappa, Mahantesh’s brother-in-law, said they were fed up of the police saying it was a case of road rage. “We want the culprits punished,” he said.

Police claim leads, promise arrests soon

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) B.R. Ravikante Gowda on Sunday said four teams have been formed to investigate the case. The police had already formed two teams and two more will be added to hasten the investigation, he added.

“We have vital clues and the accused will be arrested soon. Our teams are going through audit reports prepared by Mahantesh during his tenure in the City over the last two-and-half-years and also the previous years to get further clues on the murder. We expect to arrest the accused within a week. High Grounds police have changed the attempt to murder case into murder case. Both personal and professional angles are being investigated,” he said.

“Mahantesh’s audit reports point to some people, who have grossly violated rules. We are also verifying both land line and mobile phone call details.

“Calls have been made either early in the morning or late in the night from different landlines in and around the city. Over 20 persons have been questioned. The assailants followed Mahantesh from Sahakarnagar, where he was reviewing some documents. They could not attack him on Bellary Road as a lot of vehicles move around on the stretch. They moved in and attacked Mahantesh when he reached the lonely and dark stretch next to Atria Hotel,” an investigating officer said.

The police are also not ruling out the possibility of a professional gang carrying out the attack after getting ‘supari’, or a contract to kill the officer. Mahantesh had escaped an attack on Bannerghatta Road four months ago. The police are now investigating whether it was the same gang behind the latest attack.

Home Minister R. Ashok said, “The government is doing everything possible to provide justice to the family members of Mahantesh,” he added.