S P Mahantesh, a Karnataka Administrative Service officer who was attacked by an unidentified person on May 16 night, succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital in Bangalore on Sunday.
Mahantesh, who had unveiled scams in land allotments in societies, died of a cardiac arrest at the hospital where he had been on life support system for the last two days. He breathed his last at about 5:30 am (local time), doctors said.
The 48-year-old was brought to the hospital in an unconscious state after the unknown assailant hit him with iron rods while he was returning home in the night. The cause of the assault remained a mystery. However, it is believed the attack is linked to his role as a whistle-blower.
As a cooperative housing society auditor, Mahantesh had brought out many irregularities in allotments and had to pay the price with his life, his family said.
"Our teams are following all clues. Whether the reason [behind the assault] is professional one or personal," said Ravi Grover, a senior police official.
Mahantesh was known for his honesty. As the deputy director of the audit wing in the cooperative department, he had come out with many unpleasant facts about allotments which involved officials and politicians.
(With inputs from IBNS)
