The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accepted the resignation of the district president of Solapur Rural on Tuesday. Shrikant Deshmukh resigned from the post after he was accused of sexual harassment by a woman party worker.
A video of Shrikant allegedly harassing the woman worker in a hotel surfaced online and started doing rounds on social media. After the clip went viral, the party reportedly asked Shrikant to resign.
The resignation was accepted by Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakantdada Patil. The post has now reportedly been handed over to Vikram Deshmukh on a temporary basis. Notably, Vikram is the BJP Solapur city district president.
State BJP vice-president Chitra Wagh said, “A video regarding Shrikant Deshmukh is out and state BJP president Chandrakant Patil has removed him from the post after he resigned.” Wagh said the woman seen in the video clip should come forward and lodge a police complaint. “Appropriate action will be taken,” she added.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Police registered a First Information Report (FIR) under the charge of extortion against the woman seen in the video. The case was registered on a complaint lodged by Deshmukh two days back, reported PTI. Shrikant had stated that he was “honey-trapped” by the 32-year-old woman.
Police have booked the woman under section 384 (punishment for extortion) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). However, no arrest is made so far. In the video, the woman could be seen saying that the former Solapur Rural district BJP president had an affair with her. She further alleged that Shrikant cheated on her as he also had a relation with another woman.
Shrikant was made the Solapur district rural president of BJP around one and a half years back.
