Pooja Chavan suicide case: From Shiv Sainik to Cabinet Minister, Who is Sanjay Rathod ?

On potentially embarrassing situation developed for the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra as a TikTok star's death in Pune has snowballed into a political row with the opposition BJP on Friday demanding an impartial probe into the incident.

A few days back, Dhananjay Munde, a minister in the Thackeray government, was accused of rape. BJP has accused the girl of committing suicide due to her love affair with the alleged minister. Who exactly is this minister? Such discussions were starting on social media.

BJP leader Chitra Wagh has urged Home Minister Anil Deshmukh to order a fair probe into the matter as her family was reportedly under pressure. Ex-Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadavnis demanded that the death of Pooja Chavan should be investigated as the alleged phone conversation between Pooja and Sanjay Rathod became viral. She was 22 and pregnant with the illegitimate child of this Minister and hence committed suicide.

Rathod is a minister in the Thackeray government, a Shiv Sena MLA from Yavatmal and a forest minister in the state cabinet. This is the first time that Sanjay Rathod's name has come up openly in this case. Sanjay Rathod is known as the leader of the Banjara community.

Who is Sanjay Rathod?

Sanjay Rathod sworn in as the Forest Minister in the Mahavikas Aghadi government. When Yavatmal district was under Congress, Sanjay Rathod joined Shiv Sena inspired by Balasaheb Thackeray's thoughts.

Between 1990 and 2000, he worked for the Shiv Sena in Yavatmal as a young and energetic face. At the age of 27, when the Congress was dominant in Yavatmal, he got the post of Shiv Sena's Yavatmal district chief.

After a difficult struggle from 1997 to 2004, Sanjay Rathod won from Shiv Sena in Yavatmal, defeating senior Congress leader Manikrao Thackeray and reaching the Assembly for the first time.

He won 2014 assembly election with record margin of 79864, second highest in Maharashtra.