Beed sarpanch case gets murkier; NCP hits back at BJP MLA

MUMBAI: The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by Ajit Pawar has unleashed a volley of serious charges against BJP MLA Suresh Dhas, who has declared a virtual war on NCP minister Dhananjay Munde in the murder of Beed sarpanch. The NCP on Wednesday hit back at Dhas, claiming he was linked to extortion, murder and land-grab.

The horrific murder of Santosh Deshmukh, sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed district in December, took this turn amid consistent demands for Munde’s dismissal from opposition parties as well as some BJP leaders in the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance government.

Even as pressure on Munde mounts, Pawar has stood by him. On Wednesday, Pawar, NCP chief and deputy chief minister, met Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi, where the issue of Munde’s dismissal is believed to have come up for discussion.

But Munde faces fresh allegations, this time from family. A nephew of deceased senior BJP leader Gopinath Munde, Dhananjay is a cousin of environment minister Pankaja Munde. He is also related to the family of deceased senior BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, brother-in-law of Gopinath Munde. On Wednesday, Mahajan’s sister-in-law Sarangi Mahajan accused Dhananjay Munde and Pankaja Munde of grabbing property she owned.

Meanwhile, the NCP has brought out the heavy artillery on Dhas, who has claimed that Dhananjay Munde was hand in glove with Beed strongman Walmik Karad. Karad has been arrested in an extortion case linked to Deshmukh’s killing.

“We have information that Dhas was in direct contact with Karad till two days before the murder. So if Karad is involved in extortion and murder cases, then Dhas too should be investigated,” said NCP spokesperson Amol Mitkari on Wednesday.

Mitkari said an investigation was needed into allegations that Dhas had financial dealings with the Dara Singh Bhosale gang, accused of a dacoity in January 2001. During the dacoity, four women were sexually harassed, two people were killed, and jewellery worth lakhs was looted. “We know the person and his elder brother who were financially linked to them (the gang),” Mitkari said, referencing Dhas without naming him.

Continuing the attack, Mitkari claimed that 17 persons accused in the Kothewadi robbery case were wearing T-shirts bearing the words ‘Suresh Dhas Mitra Mandal’. “It is he who became the boss of criminals and is now pointing fingers at others,” Mitkari charged.

The Munde camp also began countering the attack on the minister. OBC activist Laxman Hake jumped to Munde’s the defence and attacked Dhas. “I am not supporting the murder but Mundes are the ones who help resolve the issues of OBCs. Where is the proof for the allegations against them?” Referring to pictures of Karad and Munde, Hake remarked, “There are also pictures of him (Karad) with Sharad Pawar, Jayant Patil, Supriya Sule and Suresh Dhas.”

He also accused Dhas of grabbing land which was in the name of ‘Lord Ram’, without sharing any details.

In a related development, Sarangi Mahajan on Wednesday met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and alleged that she had been pressured by Dhananjay Munde and his cousin Pankaja Munde to sell them land she owned worth ₹3.5 crore, for just ₹21 lakh. “I was told to sign on blank papers relating to the land. I was told I wouldn’t be allowed to step outside Beed if I didn’t sign. My land was transferred in the name of Govind Munde, a domestic help of Dhananjay Munde. I was later sent the receipt of the land transfer,” she alleged.

Mahajan linked the alleged land-grab to Walmik Karad, saying, “When I met Dhananjay with this grievance, he said he would look into it. It was only later that I realised that I had approached the person who was involved in the crime. I had never met Walmik Karad, but the people who threatened me were his aides,” she charged.

Mahajan, who is also environment minister Pankaja Munde’s aunt, met Fadnavis to seek justice in the land-grab case. Also, it is not the first time she has made these allegations. She had shared these charges with the media a month before Deshmukh was killed.

Meanwhile, Govind Munde claimed the deal took place only after mutual agreement. “I am a businessman and not a servant (of Munde) as mentioned by Sarangi tai. I have paid full price agreed upon between me and her. The transaction was between us and there was no reason to name Dhananjay or Pankaja Munde. The deal happened two years ago, against which she has moved court. Let the court take a decision on it,” he has said in a video released on Wednesday. He also claimed that, after the deal was signed, Mahajan and he shared a meal together.

Replying to the charges against him, Dhas challenged NCP leaders to produce Call Record details that would reveal whether or not he was linked to Karad. He also said there was a ‘Munni’ (big leader) from the NCP behind the allegations levelled against him. “The Munni doesn’t have the courage to confront me, so he is using Mitkari. Mitkari is a small fish in the profession I have followed my entire life,” he said.

Only hours after Hake spoke up in Munde’s defence, social activist Anjali Damania posted a photograph on X.com, in which Hake and Karad were seen dining together. Damania also posted documents on X.com that showed an alleged link between Karad and Dhananjay Munde’s wife, Rajashri.

Had Pawar told CM of extortion in Beed?

Four days before Santosh Deshmukh was killed, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar had told chief minister Devendra Fadnavis that windmill companies in the state were facing extortion threats. This was stated by a top NCP (SP) leader on Wednesday. Pawar had said the windmill firms in question were located in areas like Satara, Patan, Kolhapur and Beed, and Fadnavis had said he would look into it. Deshmukh, who was sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed district, was killed for attempting to foil an extortion bid on a windmill company in his village. Karad has been booked in the extortion case, which is linked to Deshmukh’s murder.