CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR: Slain Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh’s brother Dhananjay met Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis Tuesday in Mumbai and confirmed that a criminal writ petition pertaining to the murder filed in his name before Bombay high court’s Aurangabad bench has been withdrawn.
The HC was yet to admit the online petition, which demanded a fair probe into the abduction and murder of Massajog village sarpanch Deshmukh and removal of NCP (Ajit Pawar) minister Dhananjay Munde. Valmik Karad, a key accused in the Dec 9 killing, who is a close associate of food minister Munde, surrendered after weeks on the run last month.
“The writ was filed without taking us into confidence. For the past five to eight days, we were asking the advocate, who filed it in my name, to withdraw it. It was finally withdrawn four days ago. It is just that everybody came to know about it now,” Dhananjay said after meeting Fadnavis at the CM’s official residence Tuesday evening.
Accompanied by three close relatives, Dhananjay affirmed confidence in police investigation. “We just want the probe to be completed at the earliest. No accused should be spared,” Dhananjay said, denying suggestions that the HC plea was withdrawn under pressure.
Sources privy to the meeting said Fadnavis assured the family of a fair probe and speedy trial, and that “no guilty party would be spared”. The CM’s office confirmed that Dhananjay was invited to the meeting.
Dhananjay sought to explain the circumstances in which the HC plea was filed. “After my brother’s murder, many people came to pay condolences and meet us. Among them was this advocate, who said he would file a petition before HC in the case. We agreed to it but asked him to talk to my relatives and explain what was to be filed. Unfortunately, the advocate neither took anyone of us into confidence nor informed us about the points in the writ. So, we made him withdraw it,” he said.
The advocate, Shomitkumar Salunke, rejected allegations of forging the petitioner’s signatures and keeping him in the dark about its contents. He insisted that he had gone to Massajog, spoken to Dhananjay and taken his signatures before filing the e-petition.
