Maharashtra Minister Dhananjay Munde Resigns

Mumbai: Maharashtra’s Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dhananjay Munde has submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The resignation has been accepted and forwarded to the Governor for further action, Fadnavis confirmed while speaking to the media.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated, “Maharashtra Minister Dhananjay Munde has resigned today. I have accepted his resignation and sent it to the Governor for further proceedings.”

Notably, Munde’s aide, Karad, has been arrested in connection with the murder case of Santosh Deshmukh, the Sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed district. The opposition had been demanding Munde’s resignation over the matter. In light of this, Chief Minister Fadnavis instructed Munde to step down.

Munde reportedly submitted his resignation through his personal assistant earlier in the morning. However, he has stated that he is resigning due to medical reasons.

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday night to discuss the charge sheet filed by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) in the murder case of Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. Karad has been named as an accused in this case.

Dhananjay Munde, an NCP MLA from Parli in Beed district, held the Food and Civil Supplies Ministry in the Maharashtra government. Before taking on this role, he had served as the Guardian Minister of Beed. NCP chief Ajit Pawar was the Guardian Minister of both Pune and Beed districts.

According to reports, Santosh Deshmukh, the Sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed, was abducted on December 9, 2024. He had attempted to prevent an extortion attempt targeting a power company. As a result, he was kidnapped and later murdered.

Following the murder, the CID submitted a 1,200-page charge sheet in court on February 27, 2025. The charge sheet details the murder of the Sarpanch, the extortion case involving the company, and other related offenses.