NEW DELHI: Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde resigned from the Devendra Fadnavis cabinet on Tuesday after the chief minister called for his resignation over allegations linking his close associate, Walmik Karad, to the murder of Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.
“Dhananjay Munde submitted his resignation today, which I have accepted and forwarded to the governor for further action,” said Fadnavis.
Sources revealed that on Monday night, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar had discussions with Fadnavis about the implications of the Crime Investigation Department’s (CID) chargesheet. The chargesheet, which outlines the details of the murder case and two related incidents, names Karad as the primary accused.
Munde, who served as the state’s food and civil supplies minister and represented the Parli constituency in Beed district as an NCP MLA, was also the guardian minister for Beed before the reshuffle.
Currently, Ajit Pawar oversees both Beed and Pune districts in this role.
The case centers around the abduction, torture, and murder of Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed, on December 9 last year. Investigations suggest that Deshmukh was targeted for opposing extortion attempts tied to an energy company operating in the district.
On February 27, the CID submitted a 1,200-page chargesheet to the Beed district court, which covers Deshmukh’s murder and two related incidents. The Kej police station in Beed has registered three separate cases linked to the incident—Deshmukh’s murder, an attempted extortion by Avaada Energy Company, and an assault on the company’s security guard.
The authorities invoked the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against the accused, with seven individuals arrested under MCOCA provisions, while one suspect remains at large.
Union minister of state Ramdas Athawale, whose Republican Party of India (RPI) is an NDA ally, also stated that while Dhananjay Munde may not be directly involved in the murder, he should resign on moral grounds. Athawale, speaking in Nashik on Sunday, noted that Valmik Karad, the prime accused in the case, has close ties to Munde. Athawale also highlighted that the CID has confirmed Karad’s involvement in the murder.
Who is Dhananjay Munde?
Dhananjay Munde, 49, is a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), representing the Parli constituency in Beed. He is the nephew of late BJP veteran Gopinath Munde and the cousin of Maharashtra minister Pankaja Munde.
Munde joined the NCP in 2013 and later aligned with Ajit Pawar when the party split in 2023. He had previously served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council and held a ministerial position in the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.