Ahmednagar tense: NCP MLA held for Sena leaders’ murders

Pune: The Ahmednagar police arrested National Congress Party (NCP) legislator Sangram Jagtap and four others in connection with the murders of two Shiv Sena leaders in Kedgaon on Saturday evening.

The killings of Sanjay Kotkar, deputy leader of the Sena’s unit in Kedgaon, and Vasant Thube, which occurred in the backdrop of a bypoll to the Ahmednagar Municipal Corporation, sent shock waves throughout the district, with the Sena calling for a shutdown on Sunday.

Besides Mr. Jagtap, Congress leader Vishal Kotkar, who won the Kedgaon bypoll, his father Balasaheb Kotkar, Sandeep Gunjal, and Bhanudas Kotkar were booked under Section 302 and other sections of the Indian Penal Code. They were produced before a local court, which remanded them in police custody till April 12.

Irked over Mr. Jagtap’s arrest, NCP workers stormed into the office of the Superintendent of Police, and vandalised it. Twenty-two people have been arrested and remanded in police custody till April 10.

Additionally, a case has been lodged against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Shivaji Kardile, Mr. Jagtap’s father Arun Jagtap, and 30 others for hatching a conspiracy and executing the killings.

Sena sees conspiracy

Senior Sena leader and Minister Ramdas Kadam alleged that the murders were a conspiracy hatched by the BJP, Congress, and the NCP to antagonise the Sena.

“Despite our alliance with them [the BJP], they were hand in glove with the Congress and the NCP during the Kedgaon bypoll. The BJP candidate could garner only 156 votes. It clearly proves that there was an agreement between them to divert votes to the Congress,” he said at a press conference in Ahmednagar. Mr. Kadam also blamed the police in Kedgaon of being in cahoots with the ruling powers, and accused them of fostering a hostile climate in which the crime could take place.

Maharashtra turning U.P.

“These types of political murders are unprecedented in the state. It is appalling that the SP office was vandalised soon after Mr. Jagtap was taken into custody. It rivals the situation in Uttar Pradesh where political murders are common, and the law and order has taken a hit,” he said. Mr. Kadam said he will be meeting Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday to demand that the guilty police officers be suspended. “We will seek a probe to bring the culprits to justice. The kin of the slain Shiv Sainiks will be taken care of by the party,” he said.

Shops and establishments downed shutters during the shutdown called by the Sena, with party workers taking out marches across the district, demanding justice for the murders. Soon after the murders on Saturday evening, Sena functionaries damaged private and police vehicles in Shahunagar. Road blocks were staged at a number of places.

The NCP and the Sena have been at loggerheads in Kedgaon and the crime is believed to the fallout of a political rivalry. Mr. Kotkar won the bypoll (ward no 32) by beating the Sena’s Vijay Pathare by a little over 450 votes.

History of crime

Mr. Kardile is Mr. Sangram Jagtap’s father-in-law, while one of his daughters is married to Congress leader Mr. Kotkar’s son, former Ahmednagar Mayor Sandeep Kotkar.

While belonging to different parties, the three families - the Kardiles, the Jagtaps, and the Kotkars - are said to dominate politics of Ahmednagar, especially at the taluka and civic body levels. Mr. Kardile and Mr. Bhanudas Kotkar have a history of crime, with their names figuring in the murder of lottery-ticket businessman Ashok Lande in 2008. While Mr. Kardile was acquitted, Mr. Kotkar and his three sons, Sandeep, Amol, and Sachin, were handed life sentences by the Sessions court for their role in the murder. In February, Mr. Bhanudas Kotkar was granted bail by the Bombay High Court.