The Congress debacle in Maharashta on Friday triggered the resignation of two Cabinet Ministers from the party, Narayan Rane and Nitin Raut. They sent their resignation letters to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan but they have yet to be accepted.
Mr. Rane, the Industries Minister, claimed moral responsibility for the defeat of his son Nilesh Rane, the Congress candidate from Ratnagiri Sindhudurg. Mr. Raut, Minister for EGS works, said he quit because he could not prevent the victory of BJP leader Nitin Gadkari from his home constituency, Nagpur. “In Nagpur, the RSS ideology defeated the ideology of Ambedkar. As a Dalit leader, I take responsibility for this,” he told The Hindu .
The resignations are also being seen as a pressure tactic to force a resignation from the Chief Minister and pave the way for a change of guard in Maharashtra. Assembly elections in the State will be held in October.
