A day after videos and photos showing Maharashtra sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh being tortured and killed went viral on social media, Minister Dhananjay Munde tendered his resignation on Tuesday. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who had asked the Food and Public Distribution minister to quit after his close aide Walmik Karad was named as the main accused in the murder, accepted his resignation.
#WATCH | Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis says, "Maharashtra Minister Dhananjay Munde has tendered his resignation today. I have accepted the resignation and sent it to the Governor for further course of action." https://t.co/S8YYzZxr7D pic.twitter.com/DpxcIUWsrZ
— ANI (@ANI) March 4, 2025
NCP leader Munde was under scanner after Karad's involvement in the murder came to light. The minister had, however, claimed that he was being deliberately targeted.
After submitting his resignation, Munde told reporters that he was quitting on moral and medical grounds. "My stance has always been that the killer should get maximum punishment. After watching pictures, my mind is pained. Hence I am submitted my resignation," Munde said. The NCP leader was also undergoing treatment for Bell's Palsy.
The move came after a meeting was held between Fadnavis, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, NCP leader Sunil Tatkare and Dhananjay Munde on Monday night at Devagiri Bungalow. After this meeting, Fadnavis asked Munde to resign. Though Fadnavis was insistent about Munde's resignation from the beginning, the latter was hesitant, claiming his innocence in the incident. However, after the photos came out, Fadnavis put his foot down and demanded that Munde quit. Ajit Pawar too persuaded him. Pawar too told reporters on Tuesday that Munde was resigning on moral grounds.
The incident has cast a shadow on Munde's political future after the allegations put the NCP and the Mahayuti government in a tight spot.
The murder that happened in December in the Beed district had sparked widespread protests. Deshmukh was abducted and killed after he allegedly foiled an extortion bid against an energy company. His body, riddled with injuries and bearing signs of extreme brutality, was found dumped on the roadside.
On Monday, videos and photos, part of the chargesheet submitted by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) before a court, went viral on social media which sparked an uproar, considering the brutality of the attack.
The chargesheet alleged that Deshmukh was beaten up by the six accused for over three hours by using a gas pipe of 41-inch length with a handle with black string. They also used an iron rod with five clutch wires, wooden sticks, a "fighter and dharkatti" (both sharp weapons).
While one person was seen thrashing Deshmukh, another was seen kicking and punching him. Deshmukh was seen in a half-naked condition and forced to sit on the ground.
