I suffered mentally, says Santosh Hegde

Santosh Hegde, who quit as the head of Lokayukta, the anti-corruption watchdog in Karnataka, today admitted he "suffered mentally" in the last three months.

"In the last three months, I have practially, short of nervous breakdown, mentally suffered", Hegde, who had taken on the government and pushed it into a tight spot over various issues including mining, said announcing his resignation as the Karnataka Lokayukta.

He said his decision to quit was not an "emotional one" and was the cumulative effect and not one taken on the spur of the moment.

He said he had discussed the issue with his wife and his friends. His spouse, he said, had supported him fully.

"This institution (Lokayukta) is no longer available for the poor", he said.

He said it was not any fear of contempt of court proceedings as televised by a channel that had driven him to resign.

The former Supreme Court judge said he was ready face any legal action.