Renu Sharma, ‘blackmailer’ of Maha minister Dhananjay Munde, seeks bail from Mumbai court
India Today
Renu Sharma, who allegedly blackmailed Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde and extorted money from him, has filed bail application in a Mumbai court.
A court in Mumbai has ordered the special public prosecutor Shishir Hiray to file a reply on behalf of the Mumbai Police on the bail application filed by Renu Sharma, the woman against whom a case was registered by the Maharashtra cabinet minister and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde.
Sharma's bail application was earlier rejected by Magistrate Sudhir Bhajipale of the Esplanade Court while stating, "The allegations are serious in nature. Till now, the investigation is going on. In such circumstances, release of the accused at this stage will definitely hamper the investigation."
Sharma was arrested in April for extorting Rs 5 crore, a commercial shop, an expensive phone etc from Munde and while seeking the Indore resident's custody, Hiray had argued that the woman had no source of income but there were high transactions that reflected in her bank account.
Sharma's bail plea elaborated on the allegation levelled against her by stating that Munde is a married person and is residing with his wife and three children. However, he was in a 'live-in' relationship with her sister, Karuna Sharma, and had two children from her. The allegation against Sharma is elaborated in the bail plea stating that, allegedly, since 2019, there were disputes between Munde and her sister and after he won the 2019 election from Parali Constituency and became minister, there was a sudden change in his behavior towards the Sharmas. It is alleged that Renu started demanding huge amounts from Munde and, if not paid, they would destroy his image in society.
Sharma's sister had registered a case against Munde but had taken it back. It was alleged that Sharma threatened to register the case again while stating that the case was taken back only due to pressure from Munde.
It was alleged that conceding to the constant demand from Sharma, between February and March 2022, Munde had sent Rs 3 lakh and a phone worth approx Rs 1.5 lakh to her. However, Sharma's demands only grew.
Sharma stated that she is from a respectable family and has no criminal antecedents. Sharma alleged that Munde's complaint was a mere attempt to suppress his live-in-relationship acts committed by her and her sister. The bail plea added that there was an inordinate delay in filing the complaint by Munde and no reason was assigned for the delay.
