The BJP staged protests in different parts of Dakshina Kannada on Saturday urging the government to arrest the former Home Minister K.J. George in connection with the suicide of Deputy Superintendent of Police M.K. Ganapathy. The party also sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the incident.
Addressing a gathering outside the office of the Deputy Commissioner, N. Yogish Bhat, former MLA, said that it was unfortunate that an honest officer ended his life in uniform. It was sad that police officers, who were supposed to protect the people, were ending their lives after farmers in the State.
Stating that suicide was not the solution to any problem, he said that officers should face the challenges boldly. Mr. Bhat claimed that as the inspector attached to Ullal station, he had maintained law and order effectively in the communally sensitive Ullal area. Mr. Bhat said that it appeared that there was pressure on his brother, a Dy.SP, to state that Mr. Ganapathy was under depression.
Kota Srinivasa Poojary, MLC, claimed that Mr. Ganapathy was an honest officer and worked transparently. “The incident shows that police too are not safe in the State. Then what about common man?,” Mr. Poojary said.
The MLC said that Anupama Shenoy, who was also a Dy.SP, was harrassed by the then Minister Parameshwar Naik and she subsequently quit. Deputy Commissioner of Mysuru C. Shikha filed a police complaint against the former president of the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat K. Mari Gowda of threatening her. It revealed how Congress leaders behaved with women.
In Puttur, Nalin Kumar Kateel, MP; Sanjeeva Matandoor, president, Dakshina Kannada unit of the BJP; and Meenakshi Shanthigodu, president, Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat, participated in the protest. The led a protest march to the Mini- Vidhana Soudha. The party workers also staged protests in Bantwal and Ullal.
