Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) minister Manikrao Kokate has resigned from the Maharashtra cabinet following a court verdict upholding his conviction and two-year jail term in a 1995 cheating and forgery case, becoming the second NCP minister to quit this year.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who heads the NCP, on Thursday said Kokate sent his resignation letter to him which has been accepted and forwarded to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Pawar noted the resignation of his party and cabinet colleague follows a court verdict and affirmed his party places supremacy of law above individuals.
The development comes two days after the Nashik District and Sessions Court upheld the order of a first-class judicial magistrate, confirming a sentence of two-year imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000 against Kokate in the cheating and forgery case linked to a government housing scheme.
The court also issued an arrest warrant against him on Wednesday. The Deputy CM said Kokate’s resignation letter has been accepted in principle keeping with the party’s long standing stance that laws and rules are paramount.
“As per constitutional procedure, the resignation has been forwarded to the chief minister for further action,” Pawar said. He insisted public life must be rooted in constitutional morality, institutional integrity and respect for judiciary.
The NCP has full faith in legal process and remains committed to ensuring strict adherence to law and order in the state while safeguarding democratic values and public trust, said the party president.
