Angry, Mangalore rallies behind its favourite son

Mangalore is both pained and enraged. The coastal town has witnessed with pride the rise of a St Aloysius College student, who went on to become a judge of the Supreme Court and then the solicitor-general of India.

On Wednesday, the St Aloysius alumnus resigned. And his resignation made page one headlines in all newspapers. For a majority in the state, Lokayukta justice N Santosh Hegde was hope and probity personified.

His brother, Vinaya Hegde, head of the Nitte Group of Educational institutions, and nephew Vishal Hegde preferred to stay away from the media glare, and refused to comment on the developments in Bangalore.

The state minister for fisheries and ports, J Krishna Palemer opined that justice Hegde resigned in haste. “I personally did not denigrate the office of Lokayukta at any time during the past two years,” he said.

It has been widely believed that Palemer was behind the suspension of R Gokul, deputy conservator of forests in Karwar, who had carried out justice Hegde’s orders, and raided ports where iron ore was stockpiled to be shipped out of the country.

The minister took pains to clarify that he had no role in clearing the iron ore. “Honestly, I have no role in clearing the stockpile of iron ore in Belikery port. But I will look into the matter of clearing the stockpile, which was seized by the Lokayukta,” he said. Incidentally, Palemer is the minister in-charge of Mangalore.

“It’s very unfortunate,” said Karnataka state coastal development corporation chairman B Maharaja Settee. “We will never get an abler person than justice Hegde to adorn the post of the Lokayukta. But we have to see now why he was pained and what we can do as BJP leaders to alleviate his grievances.”

The president of the Nigeria Hitarakshana Vedike, Hanumanth Kamath, was acerbic. “The chief minister and his party came to power on the promise of rooting out corruption. In many election meetings, I have heard him saying that if his party came to power, he will give overriding powers to the Lokayukta. But he could fulfill neither of his promises.”

“The institution of Lokyukta has become a laughing stock. Its officials trap the corrupt red-handed, but after a minimum suspension period, they are re-instated, and sometimes even with a promotion. Is this a joke,” Kamath wondered, adding that he felt the corrupt officials were a source of income for those in power.