Daijiworld Media Network - Madikeri
Madikeri, Jul 18: In a setback to the Congress state government, the JMFC court in Madikeri on Monday July 18 order the police to register FIR againt minister K J George and officers Pranab Mohanty and A M Prasad in connection to the suicide of DySP M K Ganapati.
Ganapati, who was serving as DySP in the IGP (western range) office in Mangaluru, allegedly committed suicide in a lodge in Madikeri on July 7.
The same day, Ganapati had in an interview to a local channel alleged that he was harassed and pressured by higher officials in the police department and politicians, and had named K J George, ADGP (intelligence) A M Prasad and Lokayukta IGP Pranob Mohanty as being responsible if anything untoward happened to him.
Since then, opposition parties, organizations and the public along with Ganapati's family have been mounting pressure on the ruling state government to file FIR against the three. The government announced CID probe and then a judicial probe into the case. The DySP's family had then approached the court to urge registeration of the FIR.
Appealing to the court to take cognisance of the offence punishable under IPC section 306 read with Section 34, the complaint had also claimed that the accused were highly placed and influential persons who had prevailed upon police from taking action against them.
On Monday, judge Annapoorneshwari of the JMFC court directed the Madikeri police to register an FIR against George and the two officers and file the complaint as 'suicide due to provocation'. The court also asked for an affidavit from Ganapati's wife Pavana, son Nehal and brother Machaiah, it is learnt.
Nehal's counsel M T Nanaiah said that the Investigating Officers would have to question George and the two police officers and take a call on whether to arrest them or not depending on their probe.
Reacting to the court's directive in Bengaluru, Opposition BJP leader Jagadish Shettar said the minister should resign immediately and the two IPS officers suspended to pave the way for an impartial probe.
Coming under attack from the Opposition, which has been stalling Assembly proceedings since Monday last, the Karnataka government has constituted a judicial commission headed by K N Keshavanarayana to inquire into the alleged suicide.
The commission would inquire into the "circumstances and events" leading to the "unnatural death" of Ganapathy. The Opposition BJP and JDS have rejected the judicial probe and been insisting on a CBI inquiry and resignation of George.
With PTI inputs