Ganapathi was upset over pending probes against him

M K Ganapathi, the DySP who hanged himself in Madikeri on Thursday, had two complaints filed against him in the Lokayukta. Both the complaints were filed by relatives of Prashanth alias Pachi, who was gunned down in Yeshwantpur in the wee hours of September 26, 2010.

Sources said the first complaint was closed since it was an unconnected petition and no allegation about corruption was made.

The second complaint was filed by Prashanth's brother Ravindra in 2015. The complaint alleged that Prashanth, who faced over 12 criminal cases, was eliminated in a fake encounter. The complaint had named the then Joint Commissioner of Police (crime) Alok Kumar, Ganapathi and a sub-inspector, who was attached to Yeshwantpur police station in 2010.

Sources in the Lokayukta said Ganapathi had visited the Lokayukta office around 10 days ago.

He was seen enquiring about the pending Inquiry against him in connection with the Yeshwantpur encounter. “He had a lot of inquiries pending against him. He was visibly upset and was complaining about senior officials in the department. We consoled him and advised him to remain calm since he was promoted recently,” an official said.

This complaint was forwarded to the Lokayukta SP and later a police inspector for preliminary inquiry. Sources said the inspector had recommended closure of the inquiry stating that the allegations had no reference to any corrupt practices and hence may be referred to the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC). The complaint, however was not closed and is pending. On Friday, the Lokayukta registrar directed the Lokayukta police to provide the status of the preliminary inquiry.

Meanwhile, sources said Prashanth’s relatives had filed a petition with the SHRC and a writ petition before the High Court. A senior police official said Ganapathi was exonerated in the petition filed with the SHRC.

 “That night, on September 25, 2010, there was firing outside Mantri House office on Lavelle Road. The entire Central Crime Branch team was busy tracking down two unidentified men who had opened fire and one of the teams succeeded in gunning down one of the suspects near Horamavu-Agara Road. In the wee hours of the following day, Yeshwantpur police inspector Ganapathi and a sub-inspector had opened fire at a local rowdy Prashanth,” the senior official recalled.