Rashmi V. Mahesh was beaten up at the Administrative Training Institute in Mysore

A senior woman IAS officer was allegedly chased and beaten up with shoes by angry relatives of an employee of the Administrative Training Institute (ATI) in Mysore.

The employee died under mysterious circumstances within the ATI premises on Wednesday morning.

According to the police, the victim, Venkatesh (53), was working as a mess manager at ATI where gazetted probationers of the Karnataka Civil Services undergo training.

On Wednesday morning, he went near a sump on the premises to check the water level. He reportedly slipped, fell into it and drowned.

As the police recovered his body, rumours spread that Venkatesh had committed suicide because of harassment by the senior management of the ATI.

Venkatesh’s relatives had alleged that he had committed suicide as he was being harassed by his seniors at the institute. However, no suicide note has been found so far.

The ATI is currently headed by Rashmi V. Mahesh, who became the target of the angry mob.

The victim’s kin reached the ATI building and started raising slogans against the officer. As the crowd swelled, the police suggested that Rashmi leave the ATI premises in the evening.

When Rashmi stepped out of the building later, a group of five or six people chased her and pushed her around. Two men then allegedly started thrashing her with their shoes.

Police officers stationed near the spot were taken by surprise. They soon called for more personnel to bring the situation under control.