Sharad Pawar writes to Devendra Fadnavis over seriousness of Santosh Deshmukh murder case
Pune: The political atmosphere in the State has heated up over the Massajog Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh murder case. Following the Jan Akrosh Morcha in Pune, the opposition submitted a petition to the Governor at Raj Bhavan. Not only Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders but also Maha Yuti leaders have insisted on the resignation of State Minister Dhananjay Munde.
Now, NCP (SP) President Sharad Pawar has written a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Pawar has made a post on his X handle in this connection.
Pawar’s letter to Fadnavis
Sharad Pawar’s letter addressed to CM Devendra Fadnavis stated: “Goons kidnapped and brutally murdered Massajog Sarpanch in Beed district Santosh Deshmukh last month. The inhuman incident not only had its echo in Maharashtra but also across the country. Agitations are being staged across Maharashtra demanding arrest of the absconding accused and the mastermind behind the murder. The first Akrosh Morcha staged in Beed conveyed the seriousness of the matter to the State Government.
“The morcha condemned the most heinous incident by setting aside differences based on caste, religion and party. A unanimous demand was raised to arrest the absconding accused and the mastermind and to punish them stringently. At the conclusion of the morcha, MLAs Sandeep Kshirsagar, Prakash Solanke, Jitendra Awhad, Abhimanyu Pawar, Suresh Dhas and Beed MP Bajrang Sonawane expressed their strong sentiments.
“They mentioned the names of the goons, the mastermind and persons involved in the killing. The media is also playing a pivotal role in this matter for an urgent investigation into the incident, which has tainted Maharashtra’s cultured traditions. It was also demanded that the Santosh Deshmukh murder was not the only such inhuman act but many offences such as murders, kidnappings, extortions and implications took place in the Beed-Parli area before and they needed to be investigated thoroughly.
“It was said that many of these incidents could be related to each other. Thus, there is a possibility of a serial of such cases. A question on the security of the above-mentioned people’s representatives and the dignitaries, who spoke at the morcha, has been raised.
“I request you to take timely safety measures to ensure safety of the lives and health of the people’s representatives, who spoke at the forum, and other dignitaries who spoke against the murder. Their security should be reviewed and they should be provided police security by the State Government.”
Pawar’s post further stated: “Meanwhile, the goons who killed Massajog Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, are still at large even after a month of the incident. The people are not happy about the laxity in the investigation into the case. It is seen that the whole matter has a big criminal background. Many such cruel acts were done in the Beed-Parli area before. Therefore, many people’s representatives across the State have demanded to rout out such goon elements. They have been continuously following up the matter with the State Government.
“In this backdrop, there is a possibility that these people’s representatives may face a threat from these goons. Therefore, the Chief Minister should review their security and provide appropriate police protection to them.”
After the surrender of Walmik Karad, two absconding accused were arrested after 25 days in the case. But one accused is still at large. The police are searching for him. The CID squad and the SIT detained the two accused. Later, Sudarshan Ghule and Sudhir Sangle were arrested. Various versions about their whereabouts in Bhiwandi and Gujarat emerged. Sharad Pawar has written to the CM when opposition leaders have become aggressive over the issue.
