After a delay of four days, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, who heads the tri-party Maha Vikas Aghadi government, forwarded the resignation of state Forest Minister Sanjay Rathod to Raj Bhavan on Thursday.
Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has accepted the resignation of Rathod, a Raj Bhavan spokesperson said.
On Thursday, the Opposition BJP had pointed out that the resignation had not been forwarded to the Governor yet and Rathod continues to enjoy the privileges of a minister.
Leader of the Opposition in Council Pravin Darekar had pointed out, "We believe that the chief minister has asked for his resignation just to avoid chaos in the Budget Session. We fear that his resignation will not be accepted once the session is over. So, he is still the Forest Minister of the state.”
Rathod (45), a Shiv Sena leader from the Banjara community, had to put down his papers on Sunday after he came under severe criticism and pressure because of his name cropping up in the wake of the death of social media star Pooja Chavan.
“I have resigned...let there be a thorough probe, the allegations against me are politically motivated,” Rathod had said defending himself.
Rathod hails from the Yavatmal district in Vidarbha region of the state.
Published 04 March 2021, 14:35 IST