Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Maharashtra Minister of Social Justice Dhananjay Munde, on Tuesday, rubbished the allegations of rape levelled against him by a singer, Renu Sharma.
‘‘From Monday, some documents about me have been circulating on social media, in which I have been accused of rape. A woman named Renu Sharma has tweeted the document from her own Twitter account. The documents show that some complaint has been lodged against me. All these false allegations are defaming me and are in order to blackmail me,’’ Munde wrote on Facebook.
The woman, a singer named Renu Sharma, who claims to be Munde's sister-in-law, in a letter addressed to police, has claimed that the political leader raped her on multiple occasions when they were alone and even recorded the incident on a mobile phone with an intention to blackmail. On Monday night, Sharma took to Twitter and said that she had lodged a complaint against Munde and had also written a letter to Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh. However, she said that no action had been taken yet. ‘‘Oshiwara police station is not even accepting my written complaint,’’ she said.
In the letter, Sharma said that Munde had promised to help her get a break in playback singing in showbiz, on the pretext of which he had established sexual relations by force in multiple occasions. Meanwhile, S Chaitanya, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) and Mumbai Police spokesperson said that while a complaint letter had been received, no case has been lodged yet.
Tagging former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter, the singer wrote, "...My life is in threat, please help."
Rubbishing the allegations of rape, Munde said Renu Sharma was the younger sister of Karuna Sharma, with whom he had been in a consensual relationship since 2003. ‘‘My family, wife and friends are aware of this. By mutual consent, we had two children, a boy and a girl. I have given my name to these two children. From the school certificate, to all their documents, my name is mentioned as the parent of these children and they live with me. My family, wife and my children have also accepted them as family members,’’ Munde said.
‘‘As Karuna Sharma is the mother of my children, I have accepted the responsibility for her maintenance. I have helped her get a place in Mumbai. I have helped her get an insurance policy and her brother to set up a business. All these actions I have done in good faith. However, after 2019, Karuna Sharma and her sister Renu Sharma started blackmailing me and demanding money. They also threatened to kill me. Their brother Brijesh Sharma was also involved in all this. In this regard, a complaint has also been lodged with the police on November 12, 2020,’’ the minister added.
‘‘In November 2020, Karuna Sharma published very personal and private material related to me on social media, with the intention of defaming me and blackmailing me. In this regard, I have filed a case in the high court and the matter is sub judice. At the same time, the process of reconciliation is underway through the lawyers of both the parties. In this context, I have personally gone to the high court against Karuna Sharma. It would not be appropriate for me to comment further as it sub judice. I also urge the media to avoid further comment in this regard, as it will affect the judicial process in this case,’’ he added.
In this backdrop, Munde claimed that Renu Sharma had posted ‘‘false and defamatory allegations’’ against him. The minister said that it was nothing but a plan to blackmail him and collect ransom. ‘‘I have SMS proof that Renu Sharma has blackmailed me for crores of rupees. This might also be a part of the pressure mechanism to settle Karuna's case, pending in the high court,’’ he added.
