Munde issue complicates ties between Maha ruling parties

NCP leader Dhananjay Munde's resignation from the Maharashtra cabinet on Tuesday, days after his close aide was named as the mastermind in the murder of a village sarpanch and amid heightened demand for his ouster from ruling Mahayuti allies, raised question marks on the handling of the issue by the NCP leadership, particularly its chief Ajit Pawar.

- Faisal Malik

MUMBAI:

The NCP leadership initially ruled out the resignation of 49-year-old Munde—a prominent leader from Beed district, where the murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh took place in December last year—claiming he was not involved in the case, only to ask him to resign in a knee-jerk reaction amid mounting pressure after details of the charge sheet, including gory photos and videos of the brutalities committed before the murder became viral.

Several leaders from the Mahayuti—comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena and the NCP—felt Munde should have stepped down earlier to prevent political damage to the ruling alliance.

When the sarpanch's murder triggered massive uproar, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar initially chose not to respond, despite local NCP legislator Prakash Solanke demanding action over the brutal killing. The NCP chief later reacted, but said there was no need for Munde to resign as he was not found involved in the crime. Even as chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was reportedly in favour of asking Munde to resign as the minister for food, civil supplies and consumer protection, Pawar was unwilling.