Thousands of people gathered in Beed city, Maharashtra, on Saturday to protest the brutal murder of Massajog Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. The demonstration saw participation from MLAs of the ruling parties, who called for the sacking of NCP Minister Dhananjay Munde in connection with the incident.
Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange, Chhatrapati Sambhaji of the Kolhapur royal family, local BJP MLAs Suresh Dhas and Abhimanyu Pawar, NCP MLA Prakash Solanke, and NCP (SP) MLAs Jitendra Awhad and Sandeep Kshirsagar joined the 'Aakrosh Morcha' or protest march.
The protesters called for the arrest of Walmik Karad, an associate of Beed district politician Dhananjay Munde. Santosh Deshmukh was abducted, tortured, and killed on December 9. While four individuals have been arrested, Opposition leaders in the state legislature during the winter session accused Karad of masterminding the murder. Karad, also named in a related extortion case, is still on the run.
Vaibhavi Deshmukh, the daughter of the slain sarpanch, demanded justice for her father during the protest, stating that he lost his life while trying to protect a member of the Dalit community. Abhimanyu Pawar, who previously served as an aide to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis before becoming the MLA from Ausa in neighboring Latur district, expressed that the pain caused by Deshmukh's murder was deeply felt across Maharashtra.
“Even if I am part of the (ruling) dispensation, I want to tell the government that if the accused are not arrested, protests will reach other parts of the state. We want justice for the family of Santosh Deshmukh,” he said. “Dhananjay Munde was the guardian minister of Beed for four of the last five years. Munde needs to be sacked. Until the accused are convicted, Munde should be sacked so that there is an impartial probe,” Prakash Solanke said.
Quota activist Jarange said the Maratha community will not keep quiet till the deceased, who belonged to the Maratha community, got justice. The Shiv Sena (UBT) demanded resignations of both Dhananjay Munde and his cousin, BJP minister Pankaja Munde.