The Belur MLA FIR row has intensified after the BJP’s Belur taluk unit sought a probe personally supervised by Hassan Superintendent of Police Shubhanwita into the case linked to the reported suicide of trader Nagesh. The party alleged that the FIR against MLA HK Suresh was politically motivated and maintained that he had no role in the dispute involving a municipal council shop.
Belur taluk BJP president Sanjay Gowri, town unit president Vinay and other party leaders made the demand while speaking to reporters on Thursday. They questioned the circumstances surrounding the allegations against the MLA and called for an impartial investigation into the events preceding Nagesh’s reported death.
According to the BJP leaders, Nagesh’s wife, Nalinakshi, had initially referred in her complaint to a dispute over the key to Shop No. 3 of the municipal council. They said the complaint also identified Nagesh’s debt burden as a factor that had caused him distress. The debts were reportedly around Rs 40 lakh, including loans from banks and private lenders taken to support his family and maintain his coffee plantation.
Nagesh allegedly died by suicide at his residence on Oct 12, the BJP leaders said. The report does not provide the year of the incident or details of the police sections invoked in the FIR. It also does not include a response from the police, the municipal council, the MLA or Nagesh’s family to the allegations raised by the BJP.
The BJP leaders said a subsequent complaint accused certain municipal officials and the MLA of harassing Nagesh. They questioned the circumstances in which the later allegations emerged and expressed suspicion that other individuals could be behind the accusations. Their demand is that the Hassan SP directly oversee the investigation to establish the sequence of events and determine the role, if any, of each person named in the case.
The dispute centres on the municipal shop’s auction and subsequent access to the premises. According to the BJP, Nagesh had bid Rs 4.5 lakh for the shop. The amount reportedly rose to Rs 5.3 lakh after the addition of GST. However, he had not signed the required agreement despite notices issued by municipal officials, following which the shop was locked.
The party argued that the municipal authorities’ action followed the non-completion of the required agreement and said the MLA was not involved in the matter. It sought a detailed investigation rather than a process shaped by competing political claims.
The case places the administration of municipal commercial properties alongside questions about police investigation and accountability. The immediate issue before the authorities is to establish the factual sequence surrounding the shop dispute, the notices issued to Nagesh, the complaints made by his family and the allegations against the MLA and municipal officials. The BJP has asked the Hassan SP to take personal supervision of the investigation.
