NCP objects to BJP MLA targeting Ajit Pawar over Beed sarpanch murder case

NCP spokesperson Suraj Chavan on Sunday took objection to BJP MLA Suresh Dhas targeting Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar over the probe into the murder of a sarpanch in Beed district.

In an X post, Chavan asked if Dhas does not trust the state home department that it will conduct a fair probe into the murder.

Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis holds charge of the home department.

Chavan said if anyone from the NCP is found involved in the murder case, Pawar will not hesitate to take action against him.

Santosh 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.

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

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

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Crime Investigation Department (CID) is conducting a probe into the case.

During a protest in Parbhani on Saturday, Dhas targeted NCP head and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, asking what happened to his promise (an apparent reference to the probe into the case), Chavan said.

"If anyone from the NCP is found involved in the murder case, Ajit Pawar will not spare him," he asserted.

"I want to request Devendra Fadnavis to ask Dhas not to vitiate the cordial atmosphere of the Mahayuti alliance. If Ajit Pawar is defamed, we will respond appropriately," the NCP leader added.

Notably, Dhas has also been targeting Dhananjay Munde, amid a political blame-game over the Deshmukh murder case.

On Saturday, Dhas alleged that two men arrested from Pune in the murder case are just "pawns" while the "key accused" are roaming free.

The murder case has acquired a caste conflict angle as Deshmukh was a Maratha, while most of the accused are Vanjari, a dominant community in the Beed region.