A 60-year-old man was found dead in a burnt sugarcane field in Mamdapur village of Ambajogai tehsil in Beed early Saturday morning, in what police suspect to be a case of suicide. The deceased has been identified as Vishwanath Panchal, a well-educated man who held an MA degree and was associated with the Warkari sect.
The incident came to light around 5.30 am when farmer Dilip Motiram Deshmukh noticed a fire in his two-acre sugarcane crop in Mamdapur. While attempting to extinguish the flames, workers discovered Panchal’s charred remains lying between rows of sugarcane.
The incident has also triggered anger from the farm owner, Deshmukh, who blamed a long-standing dispute over a farm access road with a neighbouring farmer, Suresh Burge. According to Deshmukh, the road blockage prevented the sugarcane from being transported to the factory, resulting in the crop remaining unharvested in the field.
Deshmukh alleged that the situation could have been avoided if the authorities had intervened earlier. “Had the administration acted on our request to clear the road, the crop would have been harvested long ago and this incident might not have occurred,” he said.
Preliminary investigations suggest that Panchal may have set himself on fire due to mental stress linked to a prolonged battle with tuberculosis (TB). Police officials also noted that he had allegedly attempted suicide with a blade about eight days ago.
The body has been sent for post-mortem to Swami Ramanand Teerth Rural Government Medical College. Police said that while illness is currently suspected to be the motive, the exact cause of death will be confirmed after the autopsy and further investigation.