Mumbai, May 7 (IANS): In a major development, the Maharashtra government has sent Palghar Superintendent of Police, Gaurav Sinh, on "forced leave", Home Minister Anil Deshmukh announced here late on Thursday.

The development came after Deshmukh, accompanied by Director-General of Police Subodh Kumar Jaiswal, visited the Kasa Police Station and met with elected representatives and locals there.

The minister said that the district's charge has been handed over to Palghar's Additional SP Vikrant Deshmukh.

Late on April 16, two Sadhus and their driver were lynched by a mob on suspicion of being thieves near the Gadchinchle village in the district, sparking a nationwide political furore.

Later, the police arrested around 110 villagers including nine juveniles and five alleged masterminds of the incident, and they were sent to police custody.

Acting swiftly, the government had also transferred 35 Kasa policemen to other police stations and handed over the probe to the CID.

Nearly three weeks after the incident, Deshmukh visited the village and spoke with local Bharatiya Janata Party MP Rajendra Gavit, Nationalist Congress Party MLA Sunil Bhusara, local strongman Shriniwas Wanaga, the Sarpanch of Gadchinchle village and other officials.

In an unprecedented move, the state government had made public the names of all the accused arrested in the incident in which Juna Akhada Varanasi Sadhus Chikne Maharaj Kalpvrikshagiri, 70, Sushilgiri Maharaj, 35 and their driver Nilesh Telgade, 30, were lynched by mob late in the night.