No foul play in Munde's death: CBI

 Laying to rest the controversy around former Union minister Gopinath Munde’s death in June, the CBI on Tuesday ruled out any conspiracy in the road accident that resulted in the BJP leader’s death.

After almost four months of investigations, the agency has found out that there was no foul play in the June 3 accident in New Delhi that led to the death of Munde, then rural development minister.

A senior CBI official said there was no foul play or conspiracy in the incident. The official said all angles were probed. The probe concluded that he died due to injuries sustained in the accident.

The agency also gave a clean chit to taxi driver Gurvinder Singh on the count of conspiracy, though it held him responsible for rash driving.

The findings come ahead of the Assembly elections in Maharashtra where Munde’s associates had been alleging that there could be conspiracy behind his death, who was considered to be the face of BJP in the state.

The CBI had registered a case on June 16, almost two weeks after the incident following demands from Maharashtra BJP leaders.

The home ministry move to assign the investigation to the CBI came after Union minister and prominent leader Nitin Gadkari, considered Munde’s rival in the party, met Home Minister Rajnath Singh along with Maharashtra BJP chief Devendra Fadnavis to press for the demand.

The first to raise questions about the accident was Maharashtra BJP spokesperson Avdoot Bhave. Munde’s daugher Pankaja Palve, an MLA, has also supported demands for such a probe into the incident.

Munde met with the accident when he was on his way to Indira Gandhi Airport on June 3. His car was hit by another vehicle at Prithviraj road-Tughlak road roundabout in the heart of the capital. He died due to shock and haemorrhage following injuries to his neck and liver.