Govt probing Beed sarpanch's murder with determination, those involved will not be spared: Fadnavis

 Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said the state government was probing the Beed sarpanch's murder case with determination, and those involved in the crime will not be spared.

Talking to reporters, Fadnavis said the murder of Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massjog village, should not be politicised.

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

The police have so far arrested seven persons in connection with the murder.

"In the Beed case, the government and the police are acting with full strength and determination. The guilty will not be spared," the chief minister said.

He said Deshmukh was a popular sarpanch, but his death should not be politicised.

Fadnavis said, "Even if the accused are absconding, action is being taken. We are not sparing those who helped the accused. The probe agencies should be allowed to investigate the case properly."

The police on Saturday said they nabbed absconding accused Sudarshan Chandrabhan Ghule (26) and Sudhir Sangle (23) were picked up from Pune, and arrested Siddharth Sonawane, whose alleged role in the conspiracy came to light during the probe.

The police had earlier arrested Jairam Manik Change (21), Mahesh Sakharam Kedar (21), Prateek Ghule (24) and Vishnu Chate (45) in the murder case, while Krushna Andhale, another accused, is still at large.