Daijiworld Media Network – Mumbai

Mumbai, Aug 1: In a late-night cabinet reshuffle, the Maharashtra government has removed Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit Pawar faction) MLA Manikrao Kokate from the Agriculture Ministry, days after a video of him allegedly playing an online rummy game during an Assembly session surfaced on social media.

As per an official notification issued by the General Administration Department (GAD) on Thursday night, Kokate will now helm the Sports and Youth Welfare Department, along with the Minority Development and Auqaf Departments.

The reshuffle has also brought Dattatrey Bharne, currently handling the sports portfolio, to the helm of the Agriculture Ministry. Both Kokate and Bharne are members of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP; Bharne represents Indapur constituency in Pune, while Kokate is the MLA from Sinnar in Nashik district.

The move comes days after Kokate drew criticism from opposition leaders and netizens alike when NCP (SP) leaders Rohit Pawar and Jitendra Awhad posted a video online allegedly showing him playing rummy on his mobile phone during the monsoon session of the legislative council.

This isn't Kokate's first brush with controversy. A few months ago, he faced widespread condemnation for allegedly comparing farmers to beggars, a remark that triggered sharp reactions across the political spectrum and among agricultural communities.

Meanwhile, this is not the first time the Ajit Pawar faction has had to deal with ministerial setbacks. Earlier this year, Dhananjay Munde had to step down from his post after his aide, Walmik Karad, was named the prime accused in the high-profile Santosh Deshmukh murder case.

The reshuffle is seen as a political balancing act by the government in the face of growing public and intra-party pressure to ensure accountability and discipline among its ministers.