Mumbai, Jan 11: Amid raging controversy over the brutal killing of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh from Beed district, the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which is investigating the case, booked all eight accused under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) on Saturday.

Sudarshan Ghule, Prateek Ghule, Sudhir Sangle, Krishna Andhale, Vishnu Chate, Siddharth Sonawane, Mahesh Kedar and Jayram Chate, who have been so far arrested in the case, will be tried under the MCOCA.

Interestingly, Walmik Karad, a close confidant of NCP minister Dhananjay Munde, who has been under arrest after his surrender in a dramatic manner in connection with extortion, has not been booked under the MCOCA.

Karad, the “mastermind” behind the killing of sarpanch, has been booked for extortion.

According to MCOCA, organised crime is defined as any unlawful continuing activity by an individual, singly or jointly, either as a member of a crime syndicate or on behalf of such a syndicate, by the use or threat or violence, terrorism, coercion, intimidation, insurgency or other means intending to gain undue economic gains or advantage of himself or a group.

According to Section 3 (1) of the MCOCA, the accused can be punished with imprisonment for a minimum of five years to life. It also provides for confiscation of the property of the accused.

The SIT’s move comes at a time when all-party protests are being held across the state demanding justice for the family of Santosh Deshmukh and the execution of the accused involved in the murder.

The protestors are also demanding that Karad be booked for murder under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Further, the protestors are also demanding the resignation of NCP Dhananjay Munde in the wake of his proximity with Karad.

NCP legislator Prakash Solanke has demanded that Munde should resign or be kept as minister without a portfolio until a fair investigation into the case is completed.

On the other hand, Suresh Ramchandra Dhas, BJP legislator from the Ashti Assembly seat in Beed district, has been quite vocal in this case demanding stern action against the accused.

He has repeatedly targeted Dhananjay Munde for the deteriorating law and order in Beed district during his tenure as the District Guardian Minister.

Dhas said that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has announced that the state government will not spare anyone and the accused will be booked under MCOCA.

Although Deputy Chief Minister and NCP President Ajit Pawar announced that strict action will be taken against those found guilty, regardless of party affiliation, he has ruled out Dhananjay Munde’s resignation citing that CID, SIT and judicial commission probes in the case were underway.

Mumbai, Jan 11: Shiv Sena (UBT) has unilaterally announced that the party will go solo in the upcoming nagar panchayat, nagar parishad, zilla parishad and municipal corporation elections. Party MP Sanjay Raut announced this here on Saturday.

”We will fight on our own from Nagpur to Mumbai. We have to see for ourselves, whatever happens, happens. It is our decision. When will the workers be given a chance in Mumbai, Thane and Nagpur? Not giving a chance to the workers will hurt the party’s growth,” Raut said. He also said,

“all parties should contest the local body elections on their own and give a chance to their workers.”

“In the alliance, the workers do not get a chance to fight the Lok Sabha and the Assembly elections. This is affecting the party, in fact, the growth of the party. We should fight in the municipal corporation, district council and Nagar Panchayat on our own and strengthen our party,” said Raut indicating that the party is ready for revival and stay relevant despite drubbing in the state assembly elections.

He told reporters that the party chief Uddhav Thackeray has given his consent for fighting ensuing local and civic body elections independently. Thackeray had recently interacted with the party cadres from across the state and during those meetings the workers had made a strong case for going solo.

Raut’s announcement is being seen in the Maharashtra political circle as a beginning of the disbanding of the Maha Vikas Aghadi which contested together the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections.

Raut on Friday had dared the Congress to announce that the INDIA bloc does not exist any more, especially after its move to take on Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi assembly elections. For Shiv Sena, its supremacy over India’s richest civic body, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation with a budget of almost Rs 40,000 crore is important to remain in reckoning. Besides, the party sees an opportunity to rejuvenate and revive going solo in the elections to other civic and local bodies.

Raut’s statement comes a day after former chief minister Eknath Shinde hinted that the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP will together fight the upcoming local and civic body elections in a bid to retain the MahaYuti’s victory march and its dominance.

Reacting to Raut’s announcement, the NCP-SP legislature party leader and former Minister Jitendra Awhad said, “If the Thackeray group has made a decision, who are we to stop it? Raut should have discussed and later taken the decision.”

Shiv Sena UBT’s move is crucial as the party was not comfortable with the Congress party’s arrogance and its successive steps to undermine the regional parties. Raut and state Congress chief Nana Patole had differed over seat sharing that delayed the Maha Vikas Aghadi to seal the seat sharing agreement and jointly decide the poll strategy to take on the MahaYuti.

NCP-SP MP Dr Amol Kolhe on Thursday had targeted the Congress and Shiv Sena UBT over their style of functioning. “The Congress party’s broken back is not ready to straighten out yet, while the Thackeray group is not ready to wake up from its slumber. Shiv Sena and Congress have not yet shaken off their stagnation, so we (NCP-SP) will have to work from now on with new enthusiasm to revive and win the local and civic body elections,” he had told the party workers.

On the other hand, veteran Congress legislator Vijay Wadettiwar had commented, “Had the stalemate over the seat sharing resolved in two days, the MVA partners would have got poll planning and campaigning. We could not plan a joint program for the elections with all three parties. There were many reasons for this. So this is one of the main reasons, the mess in seat allocation and the time spent on it definitely affected the MVA’s poll prospects badly.”

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, on Friday, visited party founder Balasaheb Thackeray’s under-construction memorial, which will witness the completion of the second and final phase before January 23, 2026.

Asked who would inaugurate the memorial next year, Thackeray wryly said the ceremony will be helmed by “whoever is the Prime Minister then”. “Can anyone predict what will happen in politics tomorrow?” he asked, giving a political twist to his visit. “If there is an NDA government, their representatives might come. Whoever is in power at that time will attend. I was the Chief Minister during the foundation stone ceremony, but now I am not,” he said about the fickle state of Maharashtra politics and voters’ will.

Shiv Sena-UBT Chief Uddhav Thackeray On The Memorial

The memorial is being built at the previous Mayor’s Bungalow near Swatantryaveer Smarak in Dadar. Thackeray said, “Four Shiv Sena mayors have lived in this bungalow. Many important meetings of Balasaheb Thackeray were held here, including those of the Mahayuti alliance. This building is a heritage structure, and it was very challenging to carry out work without causing any damage to it. Preserving its grandeur was a very difficult task.”

As part of its second phase, artists will bring to life the party founder’s life story. “Often asked why he didn’t write an autobiography, Balasaheb said, ‘I am not a man of the closet; I am a man of the field.’ His life was like an open book. However, merely documenting his life is not what a memorial should be. I envisioned a memorial that reflects the values he upheld throughout his life; what he gave to Maharashtra, the nation, and the Hindus of this country. His memorial should continue to inspire and serve the same purpose for many years to come.”