CID takes over probe into murder of sarpanch in Beed, local cop suspended

Mumbai, Dec 13 (PTI) The Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Maharashtra Police has taken over the investigation of the murder of a sarpanch in Beed district while a police sub-inspector was suspended for dereliction of duty, officials said on Friday.

Massajog village sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh was abducted from his car near a toll plaza on Monday and his body was found in Daithana area of Kej tehsil on the same day, following which three persons were arrested.

Local organisations called for a bandh in Beed district over the murder on Friday, while an MLA from the region claimed in a letter to the Chief Minister that gangs were extorting money from private firms which are installing windmills in the area, and threatening farmers.

The investigation was transferred to the CID on Thursday evening, following which a CID team visited Kej police station and collected documents including the case diary, FIR copy and documentary evidence, said a senior official.

A sub-inspector attached to the Kej police station was suspended for alleged dereliction of duty in connection with the probe, the official said, without giving more information.

A report recommending the suspension of a police inspector has been sent to the Superintendent of Police, Beed, he added.

As per the complaint lodged by the deceased's cousin, the murder took place over an old feud. Police have named six persons as accused in the First Information Report.

Police have arrested Jayraj Chate, Mahesh Kedar and Pratik Ghule in the case so far.

BJP MLA Suresh Dhas, meanwhile, demanded the constitution of a special investigation team to trace the absconding accused. In a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the legislator from Ashti-Patoda-Shirur constituency alleged that criminal gangs were extorting money from companies installing windmills in Kej taluka.

"They threaten company officials and extort money from them. These gangs are also threatening farmers who own land in the area," he stated in the letter.

Deshmukh, the murdered sarpanch, had initiated development works in his village and had received many awards, he said, alleging delay by the police in the case.

Earlier in the day, Bajrang Sonawane, NCP (SP) MP from Beed, demanded that the investigation must not be handled by the local police.

"The murder has tainted the image of this region. The arrested accused are not the main culprits, and their arrest was only for form's sake," he claimed, talking to reporters.

Police recovered mobile phones of the victims and the accused but did not disclose call detail records, said Sonawane who also visited the Kej police station.

"We sought to know why the case was not registered for three hours after the complainant arrived at the police station to inform about the abduction," he said. PTI DC AW KRK