How Walmik Karad gained political muscle

Karad is entangled in a web of criminal investigations, including a ₹2 crore extortion bid from Avaada Group, a renewable energy company

PUNE/ MUMBAI: At a Dussehra gathering in 2024 at Bhagwanbaba Gadh, in Beed district, when Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pankaja Munde stood up to introduce prominent leaders on the dais, she was interrupted by loud chants from the crowd facing her – everyone asked for Walmik Karad, who was in the audience. Pankaja, now a minister in the state cabinet, responded to the chants from the audience with a barbed remark: “Where is Walmik Karad without whom Dhananjay Munde can’t function?”

Walmik Karad (R) accompanied Dhananjay Munde (L) when the latter went to meet Devendra Fadnavis (C) after he was sworn in as chief minister.

The crowd cheered on, as Dhananjay Munde, her cousin, a senior NCP leader and minister, looked uneasy on the dais.

Pankaja’s remark was not an exaggeration. For years, Karad has been the right-hand man of Dhananjay. His proximity to power made him a force to reckon with in Beed, but on Tuesday, Karad’s fall from grace became official.

After evading authorities for weeks, he surrendered to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Pune-headquartered State Criminal Investigation Department (CID). He arrived at the CID’s Pashan office in a Scorpio driven by one of his supporters. (He is known to own a fleet of swanky cars.) Minutes before this, he released a video to his supporters with a message: “I am surrendering before the police despite having the right to avail pre-arrest bail. I am ready to face any punishment if found guilty.”

Karad, in his early 50s, is entangled in a web of criminal investigations, including a ₹2 crore extortion bid from Avaada Group, a renewable energy company, in Beed, which is linked to the murder of Santosh Deshmukh, a sarpanch of Massajog village, on December 9. Since the murder surfaced, the opposition has been demanding Dhananjay Munde’s resignation.

“Santosh Deshmukh’s murder case should be sent to a fast-track court, and until the verdict is out, Dhananjay Munde should step down from the cabinet,” said Sandip Kshirsagar, an NCP (SP) legislator.

On the other hand, while chief minister Devendra Fadnavis refrained from delving into the political implications of Karad’s association with Dhananjay Munde, he promised impartial action. “I don’t want to go into the politics of it but if there is evidence against anyone, police will act without fear or favour,” Fadnavis said on Tuesday.

Karad’s influence in Beed, however, extends beyond politics. Locals effortlessly share stories of his clout, including how he allegedly acted as a de facto district guardian minister from 2019 to 2024. Such was his sway that he reportedly influenced appointments of police and government officials, while securing weapon licenses for his supporters—many of whom are now under scrutiny.

Becoming a power broker

Karad’s journey from Pangri, a small village in Beed district, to becoming one of the most powerful figures in the region is conspicuous.

Born into a poor family, he moved to Parli, 10 kilometers from Pangri, in the 1990s after qualifying his SSC exams. At Parli, home turf of the Mundes, he pursued his HSC from Vaidyanath College. He subsequently became the house help of the late BJP stalwart Gopinath Munde, Dhananjay’s uncle, whose patronage would eventually shape Karad’s future.

Initially tasked with small chores, Karad quickly earned Munde’s trust; once entrenched in the household, he came in touch with Munde’s brother Pandit Anna Munde, Dhananjay’s father. He became one of the close aides of the family after a firing incident which occurred over the election for the managing board of Vaidyanath College in the mid-’90s.

“A brawl broke out between two groups, one headed by Gopinath Munde and another by T P Munde (not related to the Munde family). Police had to resort to firing, in which Karad was also injured,” recalled a villager, who did not wish to be named.

Consequently, Pandit Anna helped Karad contest the municipal council elections in 2001 against Gopinath Munde’s wish. Karad was elected a corporator for the first time and also became deputy president of the municipal council; this paved the way for his proximity with Dhananjay, who would look upon him as a key confidante in future.

In the mid-’90s, he had parallelly begun securing small contracts at the Parli Thermal Plant, and built his own network of loyalists. When he assumed public office, his supporters started calling him “Anna” – an elder brotherly figure.

“Karad managed to keep the balance in equation between Gopinath Munde and Pandit Anna Munde. Later, when differences grew between the brothers, Karad chose to align with Dhananjay Munde,” said a BJP leader from Parli, requesting anonymity.

This was Karad’s first step in consolidating his position in Beed’s political landscape. When Dhananjay exited BJP to join NCP in 2013, Karad followed him. It was also for the first time in that year that NCP routed BJP from Parli municipal council.

“It was Karad who took 25 BJP corporators to Goa and held them for more than a week. On returning to Parli, all of them voted for NCP and the party’s president was elected for the first time. Since then, NCP has been controlling the local body,” a villager told HT on condition of anonymity.

Murky deals, rise in power

Karad’s ascent was tainted by a growing list of criminal cases: 15, in all, which included charges of attempted murder, extortion, forgery and rioting. Karad retorted with filing over 25 FIRs against his political rivals through intermediaries, cementing his reputation as both kingmaker and enforcer.

While Karad’s name has not surfaced in an FIR concerning the murder of the sarpanch Deshmukh, a BJP legislator from Beed has accused him of being involved in the case (apart from the ₹2 crore extortion bid from the renewable energy company), a charge first levelled by Deshmukh’s family.

To evade arrest, Karad had disappeared on December 11, days after Deshmukh’s murder on December 9, leaving behind a trail that stretched to Ujjain, where he posted a photo on social media after a darshan at Mahankal temple. In the picture, two constables posing as Karad’s body guards are seen, delineating his clout.

As the political heat began building up over Karad’s arrest, nine teams of local police and CID officials were deployed to track him down before his eventual surrender.

Karad’s business dealings further entangle him with Munde. He is a co-director in two companies — Jagmitra Sugar Mills Limited and Venkateshwara Industrial Services Private Limited — registered under the name of Dhananjay’s wife, Rajashree. The duo also jointly own 88 acres of land in Parli, purchased for a sugar factory.

Karad’s influence is such that in 2023 Eknath Sinde, then chief minister of Maharashtra, publicly lauded him for organizing the ‘Shasan Aplya Dari’ (a government outreach programme) in Parli. In his social media profile, Karad proclaims to be the “chairman” for the Ladki Bahin scheme, in Beed district. He is also the member of Beed District Planning and Development Committee.

(Inputs by Raju Shinde)