Quick'sand' spelt doom for Ravi

Barely few days into the sudden end to this thriving, young life that was so filled with vision and positivity for the future of this country, theories of ‘who killed Ravi’ are floating abound. The most trending hashtag in social networking sites is undoubtedly ‘justice4DKRavi’ or ‘PeoplevsMafia’ ever since the media broke the news about a young life meeting its end.

The tragedy of this nation, which is desperate for a change, is that the bureaucracy is too jaded. And a few names in those circles, which are known for their positivity and heroism, efficient work style and down-to-earth persona, rather too direct for the post burn like a bright lamp. Only, D K Ravi was a flame who was nearing his end, and did he burn bright during his last days!

Did he have any inkling that he would meet his end way too soon than his colleagues? What were those decisions that cost him his life, and scores of young men and women a role model and a hero?

Ravi was an upright officer who did not hesitate to jump into action when needed. He was against those people who bent the law as per their convenience, in their dirty trail to make money. He knew well those people who evaded taxes, showed scant respect to law, and would shut people up with their money power also had bloodied hands. And, they wouldn’t hesitate to finish him off if he continued his tirade against him.

The recent real estate boom, thanks to the incredible success story of IT industry in Bengaluru, has claimed way too many things from the state of Karnataka and its people. The city, which would still be referred to as Bangalore, with a lip-pouting ‘--oh’ holding the essence to its pretty majestic, and upmarket, suave image arising from the fact that the city was the favourite of the Brits when they were in India.

Even till date, Bengaluru has this oomph about itself that no south Indian city has. No wonder, when it became the newfound darling of IT industry, the city turned into a hen which laid golden eggs. And, then again, since then, Bengaluru has come a long way in terms of development, image change, and corruption that fed on the city’s growing real estate prices.

Villages and cities nearby paid a heavy price for the development of this ‘silicon valley’ of India which boasted of more IT companies than localities in its vicinity. Now, with that being the case, bureaucracy suited itself since then. Pockets were filled, suitcases came and left and all was well with the city that grew into mammoth structures and loathed itself at the same time.

Then there was this flash in the pan IAS officer Ravi, who happened to have right kind of dreams, perfect amount of passion towards doing the right kind of things—it is just that he was in a wrong place. The dry arid Kolar, which is just 2 hours away from Bengaluru had an amazing facelift when he came in as its deputy commissioner. Ravi changed the face of administration and how! When he was transferred out, at the behest of his father-in-law, who happened to be the friend of CM of Karnataka, people shut down the city and protested against it. Time went by, and they continued with their lives when government refused to withdraw the order. Now, he was in the department of Commercial Taxes and was planning several raids on prestigious companies which had evaded tax, and flouted rules. Some of the who’s who of Bengaluru, who had gotten used to flouting rules, sending in suitcases of money and keeping the officers in good spirits while usurping the government land, or bend rules, couldn’t continue with their usual game. The affected parties included some top ministers too, who ran real estate companies under the guise of some random names. Ravi knew them all too well. But, he was fearless.

This became a thorn in the flesh. Much to the embarrassment of his mentors, and well wishers, the man D K Ravi continued his raids without any paying heed to warnings he received.

Sand mafia, which was highly affected by Ravi’s raids, laid some kind of a honey trap and ensured Ravi’s disturbed marital life was rocked badly. Ravi entered his official apartment on Monday, March 16 and exited from the world. Whether it was a murder or a suicide is a million-dollar question which is still being probed. But, abetment to kill self is a serious charge which the sand mafia will have to face if they are traced by the investigating agencies.

A bright life lost, and a state lost its hero. The biggest loss is that his parents lost their son, and his village lost a role model.
(Image: indiatimes)