BEED: Vigilance teams of the Maharashtra Prison Department have launched separate inquiries into allegations that Walmik Karad, a key accused in the murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, received preferential treatment inside Beed District Jail, officials said on Friday.Teams from the department’s Pune and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar units inspected CCTV cameras installed near Karad’s barrack and seized the Digital Video Recorder (DVR), according to news agency PTI.They also examined CCTV footage from areas used for prisoners’ video and audio calls and took custody of data from the last three months, officials said.The allegations came to light after Dhananjay Deshmukh, brother of the slain sarpanch, claimed that Karad was being given special privileges inside the jail, where he is currently lodged under judicial custody in connection with the 2024 murder case.The matter gained political attention after NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule called for a high-level inquiry through posts on social media.Following the allegations, vigilance teams from the prison department visited the jail in central Maharashtra on Thursday and began independent investigations, officials said.According to news agency PTI, statements of eight to ten people, including prison officers and staff members, have been recorded. A detailed report is expected to be submitted to the Director General (Prisons) within the next two days, they added.According to sources, several jail employees told the visiting vigilance teams that lower-rung staff were facing difficulties due to the ongoing controversy.Beed District Jail Superintendent Ramraje Chandane confirmed that vigilance teams from Pune and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar had visited the facility as part of the inquiry, but declined to provide further details.Santosh Deshmukh (45), the sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed district, was abducted, tortured and murdered on December 9, 2024. Investigators have said the killing was linked to his opposition to an alleged extortion attempt targeting a wind power company.The case sparked widespread outrage across Maharashtra and led to significant political repercussions. NCP leader Dhananjay Munde resigned from the state cabinet after his close aide, Karad, was named as a key accused in the murder case.
