BELAGAVI: High drama prevailed during the last rites of Santosh K Patil when Adavesh Itagi, a local Congress leader, attempted to halt proceedings, demanding that the civil contractor be buried only after the state government released compensation and cleared pending bills.
Patil’s body had arrived in the wee hours on Thursday and hundreds of people gathered at the family’s residence in Belagavi to pay respects. The scenes were grim with his mother, wife and brothers continuously weeping, even as political leaders, especially from Congress, landed at his home. After his body was taken to a farm for burial, Itagi intervened and attempted to stop the proceedings.
A minor scuffle broke out between Itagi and some BJP workers. However, family members decided to go ahead with the burial. They said they will perform the last rites and fight for justice later.
Laxmi Hebbalkar, Congress MLA, was in attendance. Hebbalkar said it is a shame on the part of BJP leaders for not participating in the ceremony. “Santosh was an ardent follower of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former chief minister BS Yediyurappa, and it is a shame on the part of chief minister Basavaraj Bommai and others that they did not attend the last rites,” she said.
