Beed, Jun 15 The prosecution on Monday requested the sessions court in Beed for an expedited trial in the Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh murder case of 2024 while opposing the bail plea of one of the accused, Vishnu Chate.
Judge Jayshree Pulate posted the next hearing for June 17.
Opposing the bail plea, special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said the defence is deploying deliberate delaying tactics to derail the trial.
Arguing for Chate's bail and subsequent discharge from the case, the defence counsel raised a procedural objection, claiming that the police failed to produce him before the court within the legally mandated timeframe after his arrest, delaying his production by more than 30 days.
"A total of three separate offences have been clubbed together under MCOCA in connection with the murder of Santosh Deshmukh. Given the invocation of MCOCA, all three crimes must be examined collectively rather than in isolation," Nikam argued.
Speaking to the media after the court hearing, Nikam said bringing up old, discarded issues after 18 months is a calculated attempt to stretch the legal process.
Nikam pointed out that even though the chargesheet was filed over a year ago, the case has moved at a snail's pace.
"We expect the court to pass its order on Chate's application on Wednesday. Concurrently, the prosecution will also submit a comprehensive report detailing the schedule and timeline for examining witnesses to ensure the trial proceeds without further hurdles," he said.
Chate was arrested in December 2024 by the crime branch from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in the extortion case linked to the kidnapping and murder of Deshmukh.
He had allegedly demanded Rs 2 crore from an energy company that had installed a windmill in the Beed district and threatened to stop their operations if their demands were not met, police had said.
Deshmukh had tried to intervene and stop the extortion, leading to his abduction, torture and murder on December 9, 2024, following which an FIR was registered against seven persons, including Chate.
