Two arrested after sarpanch killed in Maharashtra's Beed, villagers block roads

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A village head was abducted and murdered by some persons, after which angry villagers blocked roads in Beed district of Maharashtra, police said on Tuesday.

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange joined the protesters at Massajog village in Beed, and demanded stringent action against the culprits.

Jarange warned that Maratha community members - the slain sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh was a Maratha – will take law into their hands if the killers were let off.

Two persons have been arrested for allegedly killing Deshmukh, who was in his mid-30s, police said.

Protesters in Kej torched a state transport bus while staging a rasta rook and clashed with police, an official said.

Deshmukh was abducted from a toll plaza located near Dongaon Phata village around 3 pm on Monday. While he was crossing the toll plaza in a car along with his cousin Shivraj Deshmukh in the driver's seat, a black four-wheeler with six persons arrived there, police said.

One of the six persons then vandalised the driver's side glass window of the sarpanch's car, while another person pulled Deshmukh out and took him to the black car while beating him up with a stick, police said.

Another car, suspected to be carrying some associates of the kidnappers, then followed the black vehicle, as per police.

Shivraj Deshmukh later filed a police complaint alleging the sarpanch was abducted over a previous enmity with some persons. He also identified the person to whom the black car belonged.

The police subsequently registered a case against the alleged car owner and five other persons under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections for intentionally causing harm, voluntarily obstructing the way and abduction with the intent to murder, as per the FIR.

The body of the sarpanch was found at Daithana area of Kej tehsil, police said.

NCP (SP) Lok Sabha member from Beed, Bajrang Sonawane, told reporters in Delhi that although two persons have been arrested, there is scope to believe that the district administration is doing nothing to nab the main culprit.

From the photographs of Deshmukh’s body, it is clear that he was tortured before being killed, Sonawane said, and demanded a CBI probe into the case.

One of those arrested belonged to the Vanjari community, Sonawane said.

Jarange demanded the arrest of the accused in the case.

Talking to reporters, the activist said, "...My people are dying. If this kind of terror is being spread, then the (Maratha) community has to wake up. We have lost a young person who bagged an award for 'adarsh' (ideal) village." Superintendent of Police (SP) Avinash Bargal also met Jarange.

The police officer later said, "We have launched an investigation into this abduction and murder case. We have held two accused and appointed two teams to catch the mastermind. We are taking help of the police from the neighbouring districts as well." "The police have suspended a police sub-inspector (PSI) after allegations were levelled by some villagers. If any of the police officials is found guilty, action will also be taken," Bargal added.

Some agitators torched a bus to demand action against the accused in the case.