Next week, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar will take a call on whether to let Agriculture Minister Manikarao Kokate retain his portfolio, assign him a new department or drop him from the cabinet altogether. On Thursday, Pawar, head of the NCP, mentioned that Kokate would be meeting him in the coming week, probably on Monday or Tuesday.

Asked about action on the controversial behaviour and statement from the agriculture minister, Pawar maintained that the speaker and chairman are the custodians of the state legislature premises. “I believe that Rahul Narwekar, speaker of the Legislative Assembly, and Council Chairman Ram Shinde have ordered an inquiry. Once the probe is done, they [Narwekar and Shinde] will take a decision accordingly,” Pawar told mediapersons.

On Sunday, MLA Rohit Pawar of the NCP faction led by Sharad Pawar, had shared a video showing Kokate, who represents the Sinnar Assembly constituency, allegedly engrossed in a mobile card game while the state legislature was in session, charges which the minister has denied, claiming that something had popped up when he opened his phone to follow House proceedings.