Karnataka Legislative Council deputy chairman found dead on rail track, suicide suspected

Karnataka Legislative Council Deputy Chairman S L Dharme Gowda was found dead on a rail track in Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka in the early hours of Tuesday, with police sources claiming he died by suicide.

The body was found on a rail track near Gunasagara in Kadur taluk, they said.

Dharme Gowda, 64, who was an MLC from JD(S), is survived by his wife, son and a daughter. His brother, S L Bhoje Gowda, is also an MLC.

According to sources, Gowda had left his farmhouse at Sakharayapattana in a private car on Tuesday evening but did not return home, following which his family members and staff started searching for him.

He had reportedly asked his driver to stay at a distance and went alone on the pretext of talking to someone, the sources said, adding that a suicide note has been recovered.

The body has been shifted to the McGann Hospital in Shivamogga, official sources said.

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa expressed shock over the incident, terming it "unfortunate". He lauded the MLC for efficiently conducting the legislative council as its deputy chairman.

JD(S) patriarch and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, in a tweet, expressed shock over Dharme Gowda's death and remembered him as a gentleman politician.

His death is a loss to the state, Deve Gowda added.

JD(S) leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy said Dharme Gowda was like a brother to him. "His death has caused a shock to me. He was an upright politician," Kumaraswamy said in a tweet.