Kokate gets off with rebuke from Ajit; CM warns all mins
Ajit Pawar
on Tuesday with a warning and censure. At the same time, CM
Devendra Fadnavis
spoke to all the ministers at and after Tuesday's meeting of the state cabinet and warned them against controversial actions and words, sources said.
Kokate had a 25-minute conversation with Ajit Pawar in the latter's chamber in Mantralaya before Tuesday's cabinet meeting, where he apologised for the 'rummy' incident and assured the party chief that such things would not happen again. Ajit Pawar is also said to have given him a dressing down over his repeated controversial statements and warned him that any such statements would not be tolerated. However, Kokate was not asked to resign, nor has his agriculture portfolio been swapped, though the Dy CM had said he would meet Kokate and take a decision about his resignation.
The CM emphasised at the cabinet meet that controversial episodes were impacting the image of the govt. He also told the ministers to avoid speaking to the media and, if a controversy erupted, to give an appropriate response immediately. "The CM also said that if this continues, he will have to step in. He asked everyone to take collective responsibility and be humble. He also said fund transfers for schemes like Ladki Bahin and for priority projects are common and must not be turned into an issue by ministers.
He asked ministers to work as a team and not just focus on their own departments," a cabinet minister said.
Sources said that in the cabinet meet, Ajit Pawar was of the view that action could be taken against NCP ministers only if action was taken against some Shiv Sena ministers who had attracted controversy. Several ministers also backed Kokate and said he must be given a chance. NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar, who first released Kokate's video showing him allegedly playing rummy, said BJP and Dy CM Eknath Shinde would damage Ajit Pawar.
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