Sharad Pawar attacks Dhananjay Munde over sarpanch murder, slams Gorhe for 'Mercedes for post' remark

Mumbai: Anyone with self-respect would have quit, NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar said on Monday amid demands that Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde resign after his close aide was held in a case that has made national headlines.

Munde, MLA from Parli in Beed, is under fire from the opposition and some Mahayuti colleagues after close aide Walmik Karad was held in an extortion case linked to the abduction and brutal murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh in Massajog in Beed on December 9.

"Anyone with self-respect would have quit," Pawar said even as Munde has dug in his heels claiming he has no link to the Massajog case.

Commenting on the allegations against Munde and NCP minister Manikrao Kokate being sentenced to two years by a court for submitting forged documents to obtain houses meant for the Low Income Group, Pawar said "the picture is not good for Maharashtra".

Such behaviour will have wide impact on the state, the NCP (SP) chief asserted.

"In the past, some people who faced such allegations stepped down from their posts immediately. The inquiry started after that. However, I do not think these people (the Mahayuti government) are even distantly related to morality. Why seek anything from them on moral grounds," Pawar said.

Pawar also slammed Shiv Sena MLC Neelam Gorhe for her "Mercedes for posts" corruption jibe aimed at Uddhav Thackeray.

Gorhe, the deputy chairperson of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, claimed on Saturday that posts in the undivided Sena were obtained through corrupt means, including gifting of Mercedes cars.

The comments, made at the prestigious 98th All India Marathi Literary Meet in Delhi, has drawn sharp criticism from Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), which came into existence following a split in the original Shiv Sena in 2022.

"Gorhe's comments are foolish. She should not have talked about non-existing issues. If she wanted to make that particular statement only, then she should not have come to that event," Pawar told reporters here.

Pawar pointed out that Gorhe first became an MLC when she was part of an outfit led by Prakash Ambedkar, then joined the NCP before moving onto the Shiv Sena and finally to the Eknath Shinde faction.

"People will judge whether she has shown any consistency in her political affiliations," Pawar said.

Hitting out at her, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday said it was not appropriate for a literary meet to be used for such political mudslinging. He had also asked if the meet was held under "political pressure".

Pawar told reporters what Raut had said in connection with Gorhe.

"However, I do not approve of the allegations that literary dais was misused for political mudslinging," Pawar said in a reference to Raut's letter to Usha Tambe, chairperson of the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal.

The organisers of the event as well as members of the Sahitya Parishad had expressed disappointment, Pawar added.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Thackeray was dismissive of Gorhe.

"Show me where those cars are. These individuals are politically irrelevant to me, and I do not wish to comment further. She is a woman, and out of respect, I prefer not to say anything more about it," Thackeray had said.

Raut had also asked Gorhe to present receipts of "eight Mercedes cars" since the party had made her MLC four times.