After the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) ruled the death of Paresh Mesta as accidental, his family and various leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have disputed the investigation agency’s report. Eighteen-year-old Paresh Mesta was found dead near a lake in Karnataka’s Uttara Kannada district five years ago, and his death had sparked tension as the BJP had alleged that communal forces were behind it. Addressing the media, Kamalakar Mesta, the father of Paresh Mesta, said, "The (CBI) inquiry was botched, and the evidence has been destroyed. I disagree with this report. I continue to believe that my son was murdered. As of today, the CBI has sent me the letter, but justice has not been served. I'll talk things over with my family before deciding on the next step."
Former BJP minister KS Eshwarappa on Wednesday, October 5, demanded that the case be reopened. “I don't oppose the CBI report but the family members do, and are asking for a reinvestigation. Hence I appeal to Chief Minister Bommai, PM Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah to reopen the case,” he said. He further alleged that no proper investigation was done during Congress leader Siddaramaiah’s tenure as Chief Minister. “They (Congress) buried many documents related to Paresh’s death at that time hence the report is incorrect. I request for a re-investigation,” he said.
BJP national general secretary CT Ravi also questioned the CBI report, saying, “We are no investigating agency so I can’t comment on the CBI report. There have been so many instances where the accused were incriminated years after the case was filed. Let us see if the court accepts this report.”
On the other hand, since the CBI determined that the death was not a murder on Tuesday, October 4, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was Chief Minister at the time of Paresh’s death, criticised the BJP for using the incident to gain "unhealthy and unethical political advantage." Siddaramaiah attacked the BJP in a series of tweets following the CBI report, which deemed Mesta's death to be accidental. He wrote on social media, "CBI has, in its report, stated that Paresh Mesta's death was accidental & was not due to murder. This report is a slap on the face of @BJP4Karnataka. If BJP has any shame left, it should apologise for its slanderous campaign."
He further stated that the BJP “took unhealthy & unethical political advantage from the deaths of the innocent youth. The power the BJP is enjoying has stains of the blood of these innocent youth."
On December 8, 2017, Paresh Mesta was discovered dead near the Shettikere lake in Honnavar, Uttara Kannada district. The BJP alleged that Paresh's death was the result of a murder motivated by religion and that he was burned with hot oil before being drowned, which heightened communal tension in Karnataka.
Five years later, the CBI, which took up the investigation from the state police, has determined that there is no evidence to support Mesta's murder. According to the letter to Mesta’s family last week, a CBI investigating officer said, “No incriminating evidence has emerged showing the involvement of accused persons and the medico-legal evidence/opinion collected from multiple Institutions clearly established the cause of death of Paresh Mesta as ante mortem drowning.”