In a deeply distressing case from Karnataka, a government employee took his own life allegedly over non-payment of wages for more than two years. The deceased, identified as Chikoosa Nayaka, worked as a waterman at the Honganuru Gram Panchayat in Chamarajanagar district. He ended his life outside the panchayat office after repeated appeals for his salary went unheard.
According to reports, Nayaka left behind a suicide note detailing his struggles. He stated that his salary had been pending for 27 months, despite repeated pleas to officials. “I have been serving as a waterman since 2016. I repeatedly requested the Panchayat Development Officer (PDO) and the Gram Panchayat president to release my dues, but they ignored me. Even my appeal to the Zilla Panchayat CEO went nowhere,” the note reportedly said.
Nayaka mentioned that he had sought permission to resign due to ill health but was constantly denied. He accused PDO Rame Gowda and Mohan Kumar, the husband of the Gram Panchayat president, of subjecting him to continuous mental harassment. “Whenever I asked for leave, they told me to find a replacement before taking time off. They made me stay in the office from 8 AM to 6 PM. I am ending my life because of the harassment by the PDO and Mohan Kumar,” he wrote, urging authorities to take legal action against those responsible.
Following his death, a case was registered under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against the PDO, the Gram Panchayat president, and her husband. The Zilla Panchayat CEO also suspended Rame Gowda for negligence and violation of service rules.
The incident sparked widespread outrage, with the Karnataka BJP accusing the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government of negligence and failure to ensure timely payment of wages to government employees. The party drew parallels to a similar tragedy involving Bhagyavati Vishweshwaraiah Aggimath, a librarian from Sedam taluk in Kalaburagi district, who also died by suicide over unpaid wages.
ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ ಆಡಳಿತದಲ್ಲಿ ಸಂಬಳ ಸಿಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ ಆದರೆ, ಸಾವು ಖಚಿತವಾಗಿ ಸಿಗುತ್ತದೆ.!
❌ಸಂಬಳ ಸಿಗದೆ
ಗ್ರಂಥಪಾಲಕಿ ಆತ್ಮಹತ್ಯೆ❌ಸ್ಯಾಲರಿ ಸಿಗದೆ
ನೀರಗಂಟಿ ಆತ್ಮಹತ್ಯೆ❌ಬಾಕಿ ಹಣ ಸಿಗದೆ
ಗುತ್ತಿಗೆದಾರ ಆತ್ಮಹತ್ಯೆ❌ಸಂಬಳಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ಇಲಾಖೆ
ನೌಕರ ಆತ್ಮಹತ್ಯೆಗೆ ಯತ್ನಕೊಲೆಗಡುಕ @INCKarnataka ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ದಿವಾಳಿತನಕ್ಕೆ… pic.twitter.com/q3FckawNN3
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) October 18, 2025
State BJP President Vijayendra Yediyurappa condemned the Congress government for its apathy. “Even after the suicide of a librarian, the government should have acted swiftly to fix the salary issues. Instead, this insensitive government continues to ignore the suffering of its employees. How many more lives must be lost before it ensures timely payment of salaries?” he wrote on X on October 17, urging the state to implement mechanisms that guarantee prompt wage disbursal.
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