Using his private secretary Prashant Bhamre and officer on special duty Prashant Joshi, Dhananjay Munde submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Fadnavis at his official residence.
On the grounds of the state assembly, Chief Minister Fadnavis declared that Munde had been dismissed from his position as the state minister of food and civic supplies. The resignation has now been forwarded to the state governor for additional processing, he said.
Munde’s departure coincides with growing controversy around the accusation of Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh’s murder in December 2024, which was committed by his close aide Walmik Karad.
In addition to serving as the Beed district’s guardian minister, Dhananjay Munde was the Beed Parli MLA. The NCP leader’s relationship with the accused in the sarpanch’s murder came under more scrutiny as videos and screenshots of the crime went viral online.
“My firm demand from the very first day has been that the accused in the brutal murder of Santosh Deshmukh from Massajog in Beed district should receive the harshest possible punishment,” said NCP leader Dhananjay Munde in a post on X following his resignation. It broke my heart to see the pictures that surfaced yesterday.
Munde went on to say that the investigation into the case was finished and that a judicial investigation had been suggested.
“Recalling my sense of discernment and considering that my health has not been well for the past few days, the doctors have advised me to undergo treatment for the next few days,” he stated in his resignation address. I have thus given the Chief Minister my resignation from my cabinet ministerial position for medical grounds as well.”
According to reports, CM Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who is also the leader of the NCP, decided to request Munde’s resignation during a meeting last night.
Following his meeting with Chief Minister Fadnavis yesterday, Ajit Pawar also met separately with Dhananjay Munde to discuss his resignation.
The Opposition Responds:
Aditya Thackeray, the leader of the Shiv Sena (UBT), has blasted the Maharashtra government for taking too long to remove Munde from his position as a minister and for not giving the sarpanch’s family justice. According to him, the government ought to be overthrown in such a circumstance.
An HT correspondent was informed by Beed MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar that “a bandh is observed with demands for justice and there is uproar among the people of Need.” Munde should also be included as a co-accused in the case if the meeting to demand the extortion money took place inside his official home.
