84 per cent voter turnout recorded in Massajog sarpanch byelection

A voter turn-out of 83.68 per cent was recorded in the byelection for the post of sarpanch at Massajog village in the district on Tuesday, officials said. The election was necessitated following the murder of then sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh on December 9, 2024. According to Returning Officer Vijaykumar Maske, polling concluded peacefully. Counting of votes will be held on Wednesday morning at Kaij tehsil office, after which the result will be declared immediately, he said. The bypoll witnessed a direct contest between Santosh Deshmukh's wife Ashwini Deshmukh and Swaroopanand Deshmukh. Out of 2,084 registered voters, 1,744 exercised their franchise Two rival groups came face to face in the morning but police intervened and no untoward incident took place, officials said. Santosh Deshmukh was murdered in a brutal manner in December 2024 after he tried to stop an attempt to extort money from a wind power firm. Walmik Karad, a close aide of then minister Dhananjay Munde, was arrested in the case, leading to Munde's resignation from the Maharashtra cabinet. PTI COR KRK

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