Dhananjay Munde to remain absent during Ajit Pawar's Beed tour; cites health reasons

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: NCP leader Dhananjay Munde on Wednesday said he would not be able to attend party president and Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's tour of Beed district because of health reasons.

Munde, MLA from Parli in Beed district, resigned as a state minister last month after facing the heat over the brutal murder of a sarpanch in the district and subsequent arrest of his close aide Walmik Karad in a related case of extortion.

In a post on X, Munde wrote that he had planned to remain present throughout Pawar's tour on Wednesday, but had to leave for Mumbai for treatment a day before.

Ajit Pawar, who is also the guardian minister of Beed, will be attending a meeting of the district planning committee and speaking at party gatherings, NCP sources said.