BEED

At the time of India’s independence, the region that now forms Beed district was part of the princely Hyderabad State, ruled by Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan. Following the annexation of Hyderabad into the Indian Union in 1948 through Operation Polo, Beed officially became part of the Indian Republic in 1950. Later, with the implementation of the States Reorganisation Act of 1956, the Hyderabad State was reorganized, and Beed was merged into the Bombay State. Subsequently, under the Bombay Reorganisation Act of 1960, the Bombay State was divided into Gujarat and Maharashtra, and Beed district became a part of the newly formed state of Maharashtra.

The Beed district consists of the Beed Lok Sabha constituency, which includes 6 Vidhan Sabha segments: Georaj, Majalgaon, Beed, Ashti, Kaij (SC), and Parli. Within the Vidhan Parishad, the Beed District is represented by the Osmanabad-cum-Latur-cum-Beed Local Bodies Authorities Constituency, the Aurangabad Teachers’ Constituency, and the Aurangabad Graduates Constituency. The graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies are based on the administrative divisions of Maharashtra.

The given maps provide an overview of the boundaries of the Beed district and the Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha constituencies that fall within and around it.

Based on records from the delimitation reports by the Election Commission, the given chart provides an overview of the changes that have occurred in the composition of the Beed Lok Sabha constituency and the reshuffling of the Vidhan Sabha constituencies with every delimitation that has been done.

The following is the current Member of Parliament (MP) representing Beed district in the Lok Sabha, as of 2024:

The following are the current Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) representing constituencies in Beed district, as of 2024:

The following is the current Guardian Minister for Beed district, as of 2024:

The following table lists the current members of the Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad representing Beed district through various constituencies, as of 2024:

The following are the key administrative heads of Beed district, as of 2024:

Beed district has a total of 11 Urban Local Bodies as of 2024, which include 6 Municipal Councils (Nagar Parishad) and 5 Town Councils (Nagar Panchayat). The district also comprises 1,019 Gram Panchayats and 15 Panchayat Samitis.

The Beed Zilla Parishad was established after the formation of the state of Maharashtra in 1960. Although the institution has long been functional, it lacked a dedicated building for many years. A new building for the Zilla Parishad was inaugurated in 2022, marking a significant milestone in the administrative infrastructure of the district.

The Beed Nagar Palika was established in 1952 under the then-undivided Hyderabad State. Following the creation of the Maharashtra State in 1960, the Beed District Council was constituted in 1962, leading to the formal dissolution of earlier local bodies and a more integrated civic governance structure.

The following towns in Beed district are governed by Municipal Councils, which include the Ambejogai Municipal Council, Beed Municipal Council, Gevrai Municipal Council, Dharur Municipal Council, Majalgaon Municipal Council, Parali Vaijnath Municipal Council, Patoda Nagar Panchayat, Kej Nagar Panchayat, Ashti Nagar Panchayat, Shirur Kasar Nagar Panchayat, and Wadwani Nagar Panchayat.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha election, there were a total of 40 contestants from Beed, out of which 7 candidates had criminal cases against them, with 3 of the contestants having serious cases registered. The contestant with the highest number of criminal cases registered was a Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi (VBA) contestant.

The elected MP, Bajrang Manohar Sonwane, has no criminal case against him and belongs to the NCP-SP.

In the 2019 Vidhan Sabha election, there were a total of 114 contestants from the 6 Vidhan Sabha constituencies of Beed. Out of which, 29 contestants had criminal cases against them, with 11 of them having serious cases. The candidate with the highest number of criminal cases registered was from the NCP.

The elected MLAs of Georai, Beed, and Parli have criminal cases registered against them. Amongst them, Dhananjay Munde from Parli Vidhan Sabha constituency has the highest number of criminal cases (nine cases) registered against him.

On 15 May 2024, tensions erupted between the Vanjari and Maratha communities in Nandurghat, leading to a stone-pelting incident triggered by an offensive social media post targeting Pankaja Munde. In response, a meeting was held in the Vanjari-majority village of Mundewadi, where an individual called for a boycott of the Maratha community. The video of this appeal went viral on May 26, further intensifying tensions between the two communities. However, Beed Superintendent of Police Nandkumar Thakur later clarified that there were no signs of hostility between the two groups.

Between September and October 2023, several districts in Marathwada were affected by widespread protests led by Jarange Patil, advocating for the inclusion of the Maratha community in the OBC category for reservations in government jobs and education. Tensions escalated on 30 October 2023, when pro-Maratha quota protestors attacked the residence of NCP MLA Prakash Solanke, from the Ajit Pawar faction, in Majalgaon town, Beed district. The protestors set fire to Solanke’s residence, hurled stones, and torched a car parked on the property. They also vandalized the first floor of the Majalgaon Municipal Council building.

In addition to targeting Solanke’s property, several other NCP leaders’ offices and residences were also damaged during the unrest. Authorities responded by imposing a curfew to restore order, and 49 protestors were arrested as part of the efforts to bring the situation under control.