Bengaluru: As public anger escalated over the “suicide” of the highly respected IAS officer D. K. Ravi, with the combined opposition comprising the BJP and JD(S) taking CM Siddaramaiah to task for ‘tarnishing the image’ of the 36-year-old, the woman in the eye of the storm, lent credence to the theory that the daring officer committed suicide on Monday after she had turned down his proposal of marriage.

A coursemate of the IAS officer, she scotched speculation that they were in a relationship, and shared with chief secretary Kaushik Mukherjee, the chilling call details, text messages and emails sent to her by Mr. Ravi before his death. She rushed to Bengaluru after she learnt of Mr Ravi’s death and came clean in the light of reports that she was romantically linked with him.

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She told the chief secretary how her course mate repeatedly pleaded with her to “cooperate” with him and to end her marriage to a software engineer-turned realty entrepreneur.

Mr. Ravi called her several times on Monday and threatened to take the extreme step if she did not “cooperate” with him, but she remained steadfast in her decision to not break up her marriage.

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During her meeting with the chief secretary, she also offered to cooperate with police officers during the probe into Mr. Ravi’s death, according to official sources.

Sources said this case of a one-sided love affair gone wrong had its impact on Mr Ravi’s marital life after his wife Kusuma learnt of it, resulting in frequent arguments.

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At one point, Kusuma and her well-connected kin reportedly threatened the IAS officer that they would file a complaint of dowry harassment against him, a move which could have besmirched his record as an officer of integrity who dared to take on the rich and the powerful involved in illegal sand mining and evasion of taxes while executing real estate projects.

On his part, Mr Ravi was also upset that Kusuma had not revealed her own past- she had reportedly eloped and secretly married her beau while in college.

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Perhaps, the prospect of facing the ignominy of being charged with dowry harassment, coupled with his course mate’s resolute rejection of his advances escalated levels of stress, sources said.

Sources also said the female IAS officer’s meeting with the chief secretary and her stay in Bengaluru was kept a secret while officers of CID (Criminal Investigation Department) went about corroborating information provided by her with other pieces of evidence such as call records of Mr Ravi’s cell phone, statement of witnesses and colleagues.

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Incidentally, Mr Ravi and the female IAS officer were among the toppers in the 2009 batch of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) — he secured the 34th rank, and she, the 43rd rank. She opted for Karnataka cadre though she belongs to Andhra Pradesh and was coincidentally, posted first to Mr Ravi’s home district of Tumakuru.