Goa, Dec. 18 -- Maharashtra Sports Minister and NCP leader Manikrao Kokate resigned from his post on Wednesday, hours after a Nashik sessions court upheld his conviction in a nearly three-decade-old housing scam case. The development has triggered political churn within the ruling Mahayuti alliance and intensified pressure on Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

The sessions court confirmed the two-year prison sentence earlier awarded to Kokate in connection with a 1995 case involving the alleged misuse of a 10 per cent quota reserved for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) in a housing scheme. Following the court's decision, Kokate stepped down from the ministry, which has now been placed under the charge of Ajit Pawar.

Kokate and his b...