Beed Sarpanch murder: Maratha community holds 'Akrosh Morcha', demands justice for Santosh Deshmukh

On Wednesday, Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat had met Santosh Deshmukh`s family at his village. Pic/X

Members of the Maratha community on Friday took out a protest march at Renapur in Latur, Maharashtra, against the brutal murder of Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed, and sought justice for his family, news agency PTI reported.

Deshmukh's kids Vaibhavi and Viraj also took part in the protest and handed over a memorandum of demands to tehsildar Manjusha Bhagat after the agitation.

According to PTI, the demands include that the murder case be heard in a fast-track court, capital punishment for those behind the crime, government job for one member of Deshmukh's family and suspension of police officers who allegedly delayed registration of case or assisted the accused.

The march was organised under the banner of 'Sakal Maratha Samaj' in Renapur taluka. It witnessed the participation of thousands of Maratha community members who took out the march from Shriram Vidyalaya to the Tehsil Office, where the protesters presented their memorandum of demands. They raised slogans to denounce "lack of swift action" in the case and also sought strict action against the administration in connection with the alleged custodial death of Somnath Suryawanshi, an accused in the Parbhani violence case.

Vaibhavi made an emotional appeal and said the government must ensure justice for her family.

Beed Sarpanch murder: Another protest on January 1

"I am a granddaughter of this soil from Wala village in Renapur tehsil. Stand with us in our fight for justice. May no family face the tragedy we have endured? My father prioritised the welfare of the community over his family and was even honoured with awards for his contributions to the Gram Panchayat. The government must ensure that we get justice and arrest the accused without delay," she said.

According to PTI, the Sakal Maratha Samaj has announced four more protests over the murder. The first will be a roadblock demonstration at Renapur-Pimpal Phata on January 1.

Deshmukh, who belonged to the Maratha community, was abducted and killed in Beed district on December 9. He is alleged to have been tortured before the murder. A first information report (FIR) was registered against seven persons for the crime.

One of the accused, Vishnu Chate, allegedly demanded Rs 2 crore from an energy company that had installed a windmill in the district and threatened to stop the firm's operations if the demand was not met. When Deshmukh had tried to stop the extortion, the accused abducted and murdered him, police said.

Protests erupted in Beed after photographs of Deshmukh's body with injury marks was shared widely on social media. The opposition has claimed that state minister Dhananjay Munde's close aide Walmik Karad is the mastermind behind the murder.

(With PTI inputs)