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Walmik Karad charged under MCOCA in Beed sarpanch’s death

Jan 14, 2025 06:57 PM IST

The development unfolded after the Kej sessions court granted Karad judicial custody in an unrelated extortion case

Mumba: Walmik Karad, a close aide of Maharashtra’s food and civil supplies minister Dhananjay Munde, has been charged under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in connection with the death of Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog. The charges come 35 days after Deshmukh’s demise.

The death has sparked protests across Beed(Raju Shinde/ Hindustan Times)
The death has sparked protests across Beed(Raju Shinde/ Hindustan Times)

The development unfolded after the Kej sessions court granted Karad judicial custody in an unrelated extortion case. Subsequently, the police submitted an application to charge Karad under MCOCA in the Deshmukh death. The court accepted the application and issued a production warrant. Karad is now set to be presented before the court on Wednesday, where the police will seek his custody.

News of the MCOCA charges prompted a bandh in Parali, called by Karad’s supporters. Parubai Karad, the accused’s mother, joined other demonstrators in staging a protest outside the Parli police station. She alleged that her son was being framed in false cases.

Earlier, Karad appeared before the Kej sessions court, where the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) sought an extension of his police custody. The court denied the request, granting judicial custody instead. However, the CID and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) moved swiftly, filing an application to invoke MCOCA against Karad in the Deshmukh case. The MCOCA court approved the request and issued a production warrant.

Karad’s lawyer, Siddheshwar Thombre, expressed concerns over the sudden turn of events. "Karad’s police custody ended today, and the court granted judicial custody. Later, following the CID’s application, the MCOCA court issued a production warrant. We are still awaiting the details and documents related to the MCOCA charges. At this point, we are unaware of the specific grounds for the charges. Once we have all the necessary information, we will decide on the next steps," Thombre said.

Karad’s next court appearance is set to provide clarity on the evidence linking him to Deshmukh's death and the basis for invoking the stringent MCOCA provisions.

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