Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai today clarified that minister KS Eshwarappa, embroiled in a controversy over his alleged role in the suicide of a contractor, will continue in his cabinet for the time being. He told NDTV in an exclusive interview, “The postmortem has been done. Let the preliminary investigation begin. Based on the preliminary investigation, we will decide the further course of action.”
Mr Eshwarappa, Minister of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj in Mr Bommai’s cabinet, has been accused of corruption by civil contractor Santosh Patil, who allegedly committed suicide on Tuesday.
The minister’s name appeared in the last phone messages from the contractor, who accused him of being “entirely responsible” for his death. He alleged that Mr Bommai had demanded a “40 per cent cut money” to clear a bill of Rs 4 crore for the work done by him for the rural development department.
There has been growing demand for Mr Eshwarappa’s resignation from the opposition Congress, which has accused the BJP and Mr Bommai’s government of shielding the minister.
Asked if there was pressure from the high command – which is reportedly inclined to sack Mr Eshwarappa – Mr Bommai told NDTV, “I am not under any pressure. Nothing to do with the high command. The decision will be taken purely on the basis of preliminary investigation.”
Asked whether having Mr. Eshwarappa in the cabinet would leave room for a fair probe, the chief minister said, “What you think or I think is not important. What is the fact of the matter is important.”
Mr. Eshwarappa has refused to step down. “If they are asking for my resignation, I will not resign,” he told reporters earlier this week. Issuing a department letter dated March 28, which stated that no work order had been issued, Mr. Eshwarappa said, “There was no work order, thus there was no question of cut money. ( Sandeep) Patil wanted payment without norms – How can payment be issued without payment of work order?”
The contractor’s allegations have created a major political storm in the state, putting the ruling BJP on the backfoot. The contractor had sent the charges of his cut money to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him and the Chief Minister to take care of his wife and child.
State Congress leader DK Shivakumar alleged that Santosh Patil’s death was “murder, not suicide” and demanded that Mr Eshwarappa be arrested.