Beed sarpanch murder: Leaders meet Maharashtra guv for removal of Dhananjay Munde from cabinet

A delegation of leaders on Monday met Maharashtra governor C P Radhakrishnan and demanded the removal of Minister Dhananjay Munde from the state cabinet, to ensure a fair probe into the murder of Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.

Leaders, including BJP MLA Suresh Dhas, submitted a memorandum to the governor at Raj Bhavan, urging him to take decisive action to uphold the rule of law and public confidence in the justice system.

Deshmukh, sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed district, was abducted, tortured and murdered on December 9, apparently because he tried to thwart an attempt to extort money from an energy firm operating a windmill project.

Police have so far arrested seven persons in connection with the murder case.

Walmik Karad, an associate of Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde, has been arrested in the extortion case.

The leaders have demanded Munde's resignation, a murder case against Karad, strict action against negligent police officials, and measures to curb extortion and hooliganism in Beed.

The memorandum stated that extortion activities had escalated during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and culminated in Deshmukh's murder.

On May 28, 2024, an officer of Avaada Power Pvt Ltd was kidnapped and rescued after timely action by the Ahilyanagar police, but the Beed police were criticised for their lack of proactive measures, the leaders claimed in the memorandum.

They alleged that Karad issued repeated threats to Avaada officials, demanding Rs 2 crore, and on December 6, 2024, his associates reportedly attacked security personnel at the company's Massajog storeyard.

Deshmukh was allegedly kidnapped, tortured, and murdered on December 9, and a video of the crime was circulated to intimidate others. The body was found in a neighbouring village, the memorandum said.

The leaders said residents of Massajog staged protests demanding the arrest of the accused the next day, but the cases were registered only after mounting public pressure.

The memorandum stated that on December 31, 2024, Karad announced his surrender through a video on social media, and crowds gathered at the CID headquarters in Pune during his surrender, causing disorder.

Leaders claimed that questions have been raised about alleged preferential treatment for Karad and the influence of powerful figures on the investigation.

The memorandum was signed by former MP Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, NCP (SP) MP from Beed Bajarang Sonawane, Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar, MLA Jitendra Awhad, among others.