Karnataka minister resigns over policeman suicide

K J George's resignation is a major setback for chief minister Siddaramaiah who had defended the minister in public

K J George, a senior Karnataka Minister resigned on Monday after a local court in Madikeri directed the police to register a complaint against him in a case of suicide of a police officer, who had blamed the minister of driving him to death.

George's resignation is a major setback for chief minister Siddaramaiah  who had defended the minister in public including in the state assembly, saying the charges were politically motivated and suicides by police were common.

On July 7, a deputy superintendent  of police M K Ganapathy had accused George and two senior officers of harassment in an interview to a local television channel before committing suicide at a local lodge in Madikeri. Ganapathy's son had approached the court saying that the local police in Kushalanagar had not registered a complaint against the minister and two police officials named by the DySP in the video.

The death also took political overtones with opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is gearing up for the Assembly elections in 2018,  stalled the functioning of the state assembly for over a week seeking George's resignation. It had also sought an investigation by the CBI, which was rejected by Siddaramaiah, who instead appointed a Judicial commission of inquiry headed by a retired Karnataka High Court judge K N Keshavanarayana.

The criminal investigation department of the Karnataka Police is investigating the case independently.

"Only after the court directed the police to file FIR did George resign. It doesn't show the government or the congress party in good light," says Sandeep Shastri, political scientist and pro-vice chancellor at the Jain University. "It is a problem with any person in power, irrespective of the party. Somehow they hold on to power even if there is evidence against them.

George, who is close to the Congress High Command, has admitted interacting with Ganapathy when he was the Home Minister but has denied that he had harassed him.

"My conscience is clear. There is no proof against me. I will come out in the clear," said George in a late evening press conference after he stepped down as the Minister for Bengaluru and  town planning.

BJP Members of Parliament have planned to protest in the Parliament on Tuesday, demanding that the case should be handed over to the CBI.

Siddaramaiah accepted the resignation. The ruling Congress party admitted that George had resigned due to public pressure but also pointed that the opposition BJP is also not clean.

"Merely lodging a  FIR means a person is guilty. There are many ministers in the government of India who have serious FIRs, nobody has resigned," says Dinesh Gundurao, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) working president and AICC spokesperson. "But we are also looking at public perception."

For Siddaramaiah, George's resignation comes at a time when he is struggling to bring the government, which has been accused of non performance,  to shape.  Last month, he reshuffled his cabinet by dropping non performing ministers that caused revolt among senior partymen, and brought in young ministers on key roles.

Siddaramaiah also had stepped up focus on governance in Bengaluru. The capital city got Rs 7,200 crore investment earmarked to improve infrastructure such as flyovers and subways, while there have been efforts to expand industry outside of the city.