BENGALURU (TIP): IAS officer D K Ravi, posted as Additional Commissioner (Enforcement) of Commercial Tax Department, was found dead at his residence near Koramangala on March 16.

The 2009-batch IAS officer was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his ninth-floor flat (Number 903, E block) at Prestige St John’s Wood Apartment at Suddguntepalya on Tavarekere Main Road by Kusuma, his wife, at around 6:30 pm. Police Commissioner M N Reddi said:

“Prima facie, it looks like a case of suicide. Until the inquest is conducted, we cannot come to a conclusive understanding.”

Ravi, 35, had moved to this official flat, provided by the department, just one-and-a-half months ago. He had married Kusuma, daughter of former Rajarajeshwarinagar CMC president Hanumantharayappa, four years ago.

Ravi, from Tumakuru, used to visit his father-in-law’s house in Mallathalli, off Nagarabhavi, on weekends. This weekend, too, he was at his in-laws’ house, and left for office from there on Monday morning.

At 10:35 am, he left office for his apartment. His driver waited for him at the parking lot from 10:45 am.

The police said it was only in the evening that his wife and other family members grew suspicious when there was no response to repeated calls on Ravi’s cellphone.

Kusuma opened the door to their flat using a duplicate key around 6:30 pm. “His wife and father-in-law found him hanging from the bedroom ceiling fan by a cloth. A special team led by DCP (Southeast) Rohini Katoch Sepat, a qualified medical doctor, will probe the case,” said Reddi.

The young bureaucrat had hit headlines when, as deputy commissioner of Kolar, he initiated a drive to clear encroachments on government lands. Kolar residents had observed a bandh to protest his transfer last November.

Amidst outrage over the mysterious death of IAS officer KD Ravi in Karnataka, Congress president Sonia Gandhi today asked state Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to hand over the inquiry into the incident to CBI.

“The Congress president has advised the Karnataka Chief Minister to hand over the inquiry into IAS officer DK Ravi’s death to CBI,” party general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Digvijay Singh said.Muniyappa, Congress MP from Kolar, today took up a position contrary to what his party government in Karnataka is maintaining and said he would prefer CBI investigation into Ravi’s death. He said that he had talked to Sonia Gandhi and AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh (in-charge of the party’s Karnataka unit) on the subject.

Siddaramaiah to clear air on Monday

• Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is expected to make an announcement whether he would hand over the probe to CBI or not on the floor of the House on Monday
• Congress MP Muddahanumegowda said all nineCongress Lok Sabha members from Karnataka were in favour of a CBI probe into Ravi’s death and had conveyed it to AICC chief Sonia Gandhi

On day of death, Ravi made 44 calls to a woman

• Various murky details about personal life of DK Ravi (in pic) have found their way to a section of media ever since the CID started probing his death
• Ravi, who was married, was allegedly smitten by a woman colleague. He called her 44 times during the one hour he spent in the office on the day of his death
• The woman refused to entertain Ravi and that allegedly drove him to take his own life. The woman has been identified and the calls have been crosschecked from Ravi’s phone

From the day he took charge as Additional Commissioner (Enforcement South) on November 14, 2014, Ravi led several raids on various business establishments—especially real-estate majors—for tax evasion.

While there were reports that Ravi was being receiving threats from the underworld over the raids, the police commissioner said Ravi had informed neither the police nor his superiors of any such call.

“He did not contact anyone after 11 am. He was not in the habit of returning to his flat early. Also, he used to have lunch at office. We have not found any suicide note from the apartment. Naturally, his family is not in a position to respond to our queries. Forensic experts have examined the spot and have stated that prima facie it is a case of suicide,” said Reddi.

The IAS officer’s body was shifted to Victoria Hospital where the post-mortem will be conducted on March 17.

Hundreds of people from Kolar and Kunigal gathered at the hospital and protested, saying that the corrupt system had led to Ravi’s death.

IAS officer D K Ravi’s mysterious death has led to public outrage and his family has refused to accept reports that he had committed suicide, suspecting it to be murder, and demanded a CBI probe, an issue on which opposition stalled the Assembly proceedings.

With emotions running high, IAS officer D K Ravi’s family in a sudden move, staged a dharna in front of the Vidhana Soudha, the state secretariat, demanding “justice” and a probe by CBI, even as the government refused to budge to a similar demand by the Opposition parties in the Assembly.

Ravi’s father Kariyappa, mother Gowramma and brother Ramesh staged a protest in front of the Vidhana Soudha and threatened suicide if their demand was not met, a development that brought a rattled administration under more pressure.

“We only want a CBI probe. We want justice,’ Gowramma said, with the other two also echoing the same, as the family hinted at “political pressure” on Ravi, who was found hanging from a ceiling fan at a room in his apartment on Monday evening, with government saying it was prima facie a case of suicide.