Karad was booked twice in the same extortion case: Sule

MUMBAI: As pressure builds for the dismissal of food and civil supplies minister Dhananjay Munde (NCP) over the murder of Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, new details are emerging about his associate, local strongman Walmik Karad, who is at the centre of the case.

NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule on Thursday revealed that Karad was first charged with extortion in the case allegedly linked to Deshmukh’s murder in May last year. The First Information Report (FIR) charging him with extortion in December was the second one filed against him.

Sule said that Karad and his associates, who ran a reign of terror in Beed, were booked in the same extortion case on May 28, 2024, on a complaint filed by a field officer of the Avaada Group, a local wind energy company. Deshmukh was murdered for attempting to foil the extortion attempt in December last year.

Interestingly, the first extortion charge is mentioned in the FIR filed against Karad on December 11, two days after Deshmukh was tortured and killed.

Sule is among leaders from different parties demanding that Karad be booked in the murder case as well since it is allegedly linked to the extortion bid that led to the sarpanch’s murder. She also shared a copy of the December 11 FIR against Karad. In addition, she shared a copy of summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against Karad, issued on March 9, 2022.

“There was a case filed against him for extortion in May but no action was taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED booked former home minister Anil Deshmukh (NCP-SP) on hearsay that he had asked to collect money but not against Karad,” said the Baramati MP. “Why is the law different for Karad and Deshmukh?”

Sule said she plans to meet Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, along with the party’s Beed MP Bajrang Sonawane, to urge for action on the ED summons.

Meanwhile, a massive protest march was held in Paithan, in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district, to demand action against Karad in the ED case. It was attended by members of Deshmukh’s family, BJP MLA Suresh Dhas and Maratha activist Manoj Jarange-Patil. Referring to Karad as “Chhota Aaka”, Dhas in his address said that Karad had accumulated enormous wealth, which is why he received a notice from the ED in 2022. “He has booked seven shops in Pune for ₹5 crore each. His driver has a flat valued at ₹15 crore. Karad’s overall wealth is more than ₹100 crore, Dhas claimed.