KALABURAGI/BENGALURU: Following the death of a 38-year-old BJP worker in Kalaburagi district on Thursday, party leaders have demanded a judicial probe into the incident.
Shivakumar Pujari (38) from Shirolli, Chincholi taluk, died by suicide, with BJP leaders pointing fingers at Congress workers and Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil. They also demanded the minister’s resignation. Before taking the extreme step, Pujari had released an audio clip on social media wherein he allegedly blamed the minister for his death. The veracity of the audio tape is yet to be established, but it purportedly contains the voice of Shivakumar.
“BJP worker Shivakumar died by suicide. In the audio recording before his death, Shivakumar claimed that harassment by Minister Sharan Prakash Patil was the reason for his death. The government must order a judicial probe into it and till the investigation report comes, the minister should resign,” BJP State General Secretary and MLC N Ravi Kumar told reporters in Bengaluru.
Speaking to media persons in Kalaburagi, senior BJP leader and Union Minister Bhagawant Khuba said atrocities on people had risen ever since the Congress formed the government in the state and attempts were being made to suppress those who were involved in working for their religion. “The deceased BJP worker was beaten in his relative’s agricultural fields. In an audio recording before his death, Shivakumar blamed Minister Sharan Prakash Patil. Kalaburagi district in-charge Minister Priyank Kharge is mum over the issue,” said Khuba.
Khuba appealed to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to arrest all those who harassed Shivakumar and made him end his life. “Patil should resign owing moral responsibility,” Khuba said.
However, Mallamma Pujari, wife of Shivakumar, in her complaint to the police on Thursday stated that nobody is responsible for her husband’s death and that he committed suicide, unable to repay his debts. She said her husband was a farmer and availed lakhs of loans after he had suffered huge crop loss. She did not mention anything about her husband’s association with the BJP in her complaint to the police, but said he was a farmer owning two-acre land at Shirolli.
She stated that her husband had availed Rs 70,000 loan from KVG Bank and over the past some time, he had taken Rs 10 to 12 lakh loans from different sources after he repeatedly suffered crop losses. She said her husband had to sell his two-acre farmland to meet the losses he faced. Minister Patil said he does not know Shivakumar and he had not spoken with him at any point. “Let the police conduct an inquiry,” the minister said. Shirolli is part of the Sedam assembly segment represented by Patil.