Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP leader Ajit Pawar has chosen to go soft on his party colleague as well as Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dhananjay Munde who have been accused of being hand in glove with Valmik Karad, the alleged murderer of Massajog village sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.

Ajit Pawar referred to the three ongoing investigations into the sarpanch’s murder and said, “Let them get completed. If the probe names anyone, I will take action against them.”

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However, on Tuesday, Opposition MPs, Supriya Sule of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, said Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dhananjay Munde of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP has no moral right to remain in the Maharashtra cabinet. “Dhananjay Munde has no right to remain in the state cabinet. He should resign on moral grounds,” Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule told media persons in Baramati on Tuesday.

“Is humanity alive in Maharashtra or not? There are some issues on which we should keep politics away. We must all help the sarpanch’s family get justice,” she said.

She referred to the allegations made by BJP MLA Suresh Dhas and activist Anjali Damania about food and civil supplies minister Dhananjay Munde’s links to Valmik Karad.

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut also questioned Ajit Pawar’s support for Munde. “When there is a united demand from the people of Beed, why is Ajit Pawar backing Munde? In fact, he should have asked Munde to resign immediately”.

Raut said when the investigation is on and allegations are openly being made, not only by the opposition but also by ruling BJP MLAs, it would be ideal to keep Dhajanjay Munde out of the cabinet. “Why is Ajit Pawar so desperate to keep Munde in the cabinet? Since the allegations have been made directly against Munde, he has no right to remain a minister after the special investigation team was set up, especially since there are allegations that even some of the cops in the SIT are close to Munde,” Raut added.

Meanwhile, BJP MLA Suresh Dhas questioned the source of the food and civil supplies minister’s wealth, referring to a large flat near Magarpatta city in Pune. Dhas alleged that an entire floor was
registered in the name of Munde’s driver and asked, “If this is not Munde’s money, then whose money is it,” Dhas asked alleging that several properties are jointly owned by Dhananjay Munde’s wife and Valmik Karad, who is close to Munde.

Dhas also said he would approach the police for further inquiries into the matter. Dhas repeatedly referred to an individual he called “aakaa” (the master), leading many to wonder who this person could be. Initially, Dhas was vague, but later he specifically identified the “master” as Valmik Karad and also claimed that Karad’s “master” was Dhananjay Munde.