Minister Munde's associate Walmik Karad surrenders, sent in 14-day police custody
Beed (PTI): Maharashtra NCP minister Dhananjay Munde's close associate Walmik Karad, wanted in an extortion case linked to the murder of a sarpanch in Beed district, has been remanded in 14-day police custody after he surrendered in Pune.
Karad, with his associates, arrived at the Crime Investigation Department's (CID) office in Pune in a car on Tuesday morning.
A preliminary inquiry was conducted and he was handed over to the Beed CID team, which is investigating the murder and extortion cases, Inspector General of Police Sarang Awad said.
He was later taken to a court at Kej in Beed district. The court, in a late night sitting, remanded him in 14-day police custody as sought by the CID.
Before turning himself in, Karad posted a video on social media, claiming he was being linked to the murder for reasons of political vendetta.
Santosh Deshmukh, sarpanch of Massajog village in Kej tehsil of Beed district, was abducted last month and brutally killed on December 9, allegedly for opposing an extortion bid by some persons who had demanded money from a windmill company.
Four persons were earlier arrested in the murder case, while Karad was named as a wanted accused in the extortion case.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, facing heat over the law-and-order situation, on Tuesday said no "goonda-raj" will be tolerated in the state, but the opposition questioned the police's failure to nab Karad for about three weeks.
During the recently held winter session of the Maharashtra legislature, the opposition alleged that Karad was the "mastermind" of the murder.
The Fadnavis-led coalition government, sworn in on December 5, finds itself in a tricky situation because of Karad's links with Dhananjay Munde, who hails from Beed, and also because of the caste angle.
While the victim was a Maratha, the accused are from the OBC Vanjari community.
Fadnavis, who holds the Home department, on Tuesday said he spoke with Deshmukh's brother over phone, and assured him that justice will be done.
"Until the guilty are hanged to death, the police will continue to do their duty. All individuals involved in the Beed case will face prosecution. We will not tolerate 'goonda raj' (rule of criminals)....Nobody will be spared," he told reporters.
Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe questioned the police's failure to track down Karad, and said Fadnavis had no moral grounds to remain chief minister.
A sitting judge should oversee the investigation in the Deshmukh murder case, the Congress leader demanded.
NCP (SP) MLA Jitendra Awhad said Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dhananjay Munde should be sacked, asking how a suspect linked with him could be questioned while Munde remains in the cabinet.
NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule said Karad posting a viral video and the police still remaining clueless about his whereabouts was shocking.
Beed BJP MLA Suresh Dhas congratulated CM Fadnavis over Karad's surrender, but targeted Munde.
Karad and Dhananjay Munde were "two sides of the same coin," he claimed, adding that Munde's resignation has been sought by his own party leaders.
Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange indicated that the Maratha community, to which Deshmukh belonged, would launch an agitation if the government failed to take action against supporters of the accused, whether they be ministers, MLAs or MPs.
Former Rajya Sabha member Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati demanded that Karad be booked for the sarpanch's murder and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) be invoked against him.
It is difficult to secure bail under the MCOCA.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
