Maharashtra government announced the formation of a 10-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Wednesday, to probe the brutal murder of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.
According to an order issued by the state home department, the SIT is said to be led by the deputy inspector general of the crime investigation department (CID), Basavraj Teli.
On Wednesday morning, villagers staged a ‘jal samadhi’ protest to demand the arrest of three suspects who remain at large.Around 40 men and women stood waist-deep in a lake as part of the agitation, which lasted for two hours. The protest was called off after Beed Superintendent of Police Navneet Kanwat visited the site and assured the villagers that the police were committed to capturing the accused.
Earlier, the state government had handed over the investigation of Deshmukh’s murder, along with related extortion and assault cases, to the CID. Of the six suspects named in the case, police have so far arrested Pratik Ghule, Jayram Chate, and Mahesh Kedar. However, three others: Sudarshan Ghule, Sudhir Sangle, and Krushna Andhale, are still on the run.
In a connected development, Walmik Karad, a close associate of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and state minister Dhananjay Munde, surrendered to the CID in Pune on Tuesday in connection with the extortion case.
He has since been remanded to 14 days in custody. During the recently concluded winter session of the Maharashtra legislature, the opposition alleged that Karad was the “mastermind” behind the sarpanch’s murder. Karad has denied these allegations, claiming he is a victim of political vendetta.
Deshmukh’s murder
Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village in Kej tehsil, Beed district, was abducted and killed on 9 December. His murder is reportedly linked to his opposition against an alleged extortion attempt by individuals demanding money from a windmill company.
The SIT has been tasked with expediting the investigation to uncover the full details of the case and bring all those responsible to justice.
