DAVANGERE: Senior Kabbadi coach Rudrappa V Hosamani on Tuesday committed suicide at Harihar, where he cut short his trip enroute to the New Delhi offices of the Sports Authority of India to face an enquiry. The coach had been placed under suspension and an inquiry had been ordered after he was accused of molesting a 13-year old girl at the SAI centre in the city.
The coach left behind a suicide note before hanging himself from the ceiling of the room that he had rented. The incident came to light when the staff of the hotel broke into the room on Monday after there was no response to calls and the door wasn't answered by Hosamani. A self written death note and an order asking him to report to New Delhi as well as a railway ticket from Dharwad to Hazrat Nizamuddin was also found on his person.
According to the police, Hosamani had checked into the hotel on October 13. He had left Bengaluru after the allegations of molestation surfaced on October 10 after which he was booked by the Jnana Bharati police under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) act. An internal probe was also conducted and he was suspended. As per SAI rules, the suspended employee has to report to SAI headquarters till the completion of the probe.
Body cremated at Rattihalli
The body of the Kabaddi coach Rudrappa V Hosamani was cremated at his native village Rattihalli of Hirekerur taluk on Monday night. His family members and close relatives attended. Eshwara Angadi a senior Kabaddi coach and close friend of deceased coach Rudrappa told TNIE that, 'He was a disciplinarian and the
incident of mis-behaviour is not believable. A person who has worked 59 years without a black mark, is bound to be hurt by these allegations and this could have caused him to take this extreme step," he said.
Apologises to wife, son
The death note left behind by Hosamani, mentions an apology to his wife Devika and son Rakesh. Hosamani says that he had no other option but to commit suicide. He also requests his son to take care of his mother and also donate his body to a hospital.
Disciplinarian coach
Angadi recalled his days with Hosamani and said that during their earlier days, they were batchmates. "After his initial stint with the Department of Youth
Serivces and Sports (now called Youth Empowerment and Sports Department), he was absorbed by the Sports Authority of India. Since last two years he was posted at SAI South Centre Bangalore, where he was into coaching Kabaddi sports for boys, explained Angadi.
Replying to a question on the character of the dead coach, Angadi said, "Rudrappa was a disciplinarian and couldn't resist faulty training. He was about to retire from the coaching in May 2019 and he had made his arrangements to stay at Dharwad after this."