Sena (UBT) leader's murder in Thane: Raut shares alleged audio clip of Meenakshi Shinde, seeks arrest

Politics has heated up over an alleged audio clip after the murder of Pradeep alias Balu Purnekar, a divisional chief of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) in Thane. MP Sanjay Raut has shared the clip on social media and claimed that the voice is that of Meenakshi Shinde.

Purnekar was attacked inside his office in the Manpada area. He was shot at and also attacked with a sharp weapon. The Kapurbawdi police have registered a case and begun an investigation. They have arrested Papya Shinde, an old associate of Purnekar. The search for the other suspects continues.

In the case, Purnekar's son Ram Purnekar has made allegations against former mayor Meenakshi Shinde and her husband Rajendra Shinde. The police have reportedly recorded a supplementary statement from Ram Purnekar and are investigating further.

Citing the allegedly threatening language in the clip, Raut has demanded Meenakshi Shinde's arrest. In his tweet he wrote: look at the language of Meenakshi Shinde of the Mindhe faction, who is suspected of plotting Purnekar's murder. According to Raut, the woman is threatening to tell the Thane Police Commissioner and "sort out" each one of them. Raut also said she is speaking of sending goons into Purnekar's house to finish him off.

Raut asked when she would be arrested. He said Thane has become "Beed" and asked who is protecting this "lady don". He asked what more evidence the police needed in Purnekar's murder. Raut also questioned Amit Shah, asking where he has taken our Maharashtra. He appealed to the people of Thane to wake up, speak out, make their voices heard and take to the streets, and signed off with "Jai Maharashtra". The tweet is dated October 1, 2026.

Meenakshi Shinde, on the other hand, has rejected the allegations against her. She says the police are investigating the Purnekar murder case and that whatever the probe finds will come out. She also claimed that there has been an attempt to defame her since the time of the civic elections.

The final outcome on the murder allegations and the truth of the alleged audio clip will be clear only after the police investigation. The political atmosphere in Thane remains heated after Pradeep Purnekar's murder. His family has demanded strict action against the accused. The police are taking the investigation forward.