A 47-year-old businessman shot himself dead in his car on the outskirts of Bengaluru on Sunday evening, The New Indian Express reported.

The man, Pradeep S, held Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Aravind Limbavali and five others responsible for his death. He died by suicide near the Kaggalipura area on the outskirts of the Karnataka capital.

A first information report has been filed based on a complaint by Pradeep’s wife. The police have named Limbavali and five others – Gopi K, Somaiah, Ramesh Reddy G, Jayarama Reddy and Raghava Bhat – in a case of abetment to suicide

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Pradeep had invested about Rs 1.5 crore in a proposed resort project involving Gopi and Somaiah near the city’s HSR Layout but was later cheated, an unidentified police official told PTI.

According to the police, Limbavali had brokered a compromise between the businessman and the two accused persons, and an agreement to pay Pradeep his dues was finalised a month ago. However, the 47-year-old did not receive all the money back, the police said.

Pradeep and his relatives had checked into a resort in Nettigere village to celebrate the new year, and he shot himself on Sunday evening after they checked out, the police told The New Indian Express. “Around 4.30 pm, when they left in their cars, he overtook them to ensure that they see him, speeded and stopped ahead...Before they approached him, he shot himself in the head with a pistol,” a senior officer told the newspaper.

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Limbavali said that he did not know why the businessman died by suicide, and why he had named him in the note, The Times of India reported.

“He [Pradeep] used to handle my social media between 2010 and 2013,” the Mahadevapura MLA said. “He had brought a business dispute of his to my notice and I asked him and his partners to resolve it amicably. I didn’t even ask how much he had invested or make any suggestion to the partners about how much they need to pay.”

Commenting on the case, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that action is being taken as per the law. “Actions will follow in the future too in accordance with law,” he said.