MUMBAI, Dec. 18 -- It's not only Manikrao Kokate who hopes the Bombay High Court will rule in his favour on Friday. NCP chief Ajit Pawar too is hoping for a favourable ruling, but his compulsions are purely political. Pawar will wait to see how Kokate's case unfolds in court before taking a call on whether or not to drop Kokate from the cabinet. On Wednesday, Kokate was divested of his portfolio as sports and minority affairs minister but allowed to retain his ministerial berth, after a Nashik court issued an arrest warrant against him in a cheating and forgery case. Word in the NCP is that Pawar would prefer to spare Kokate rather than find a replacement. But what if the high court, which will hear Kokate's appeal on Friday, does not rule in his favour? NCP insiders said the party is going all out to spare Kokate. "We already dropped Dhananjay Munde from the state cabinet in March. Dropping a second minister within a year will make us look terrible, especially in the midst of civic body elections," said a senior party functionary. "Ajit Dada met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on the issue and the latter has asked the NCP president to take a call on Kokate, should the court refuse to grant any relief," revealed another party leader. If Kokate is stripped of his ministerial berth, the NCP leadership is likely to keep his portfolio vacant for the time being, said an NCP insider. "Ajit Dada would prefer to wait before he decides on a replacement. He may want to see how Kokate's case is turning out in court, and whether it is really necessary to find a replacement," said an NCP MLA. If there is need for a replacement, Dhananjay Munde appears to be a frontrunner. Ironically, Munde was forced to step down as food and civil supplies minister in March, four days after a charge-sheet was filed in the Beed sarpanch murder case. A close aide of Munde was named as one of the main accused in the case, which made national headlines late last year. "The appointment of ministers is a combination of caste and regional balance. Since Munde's removal from the cabinet, there is only one minister from the NCP representing Marathwada, whereas Nashik has three ministers - Kokate, Narhari Zirwal and Chhagan Bhujbal. This may compel the leadership to consider Munde's return to the government," said a senior NCP functionary. Call it a coincidence but Munde was in New Delhi on Wednesday, where he met several BJP leaders including Union home minister Amit Shah. "I had no idea he was here. I will ask him why he was in New Delhi when his high command is based in Mumbai," said Sunil Tatkare, Maharashtra NCP president and Raigad MP, who was in Delhi to attend the winter session of Parliament. There is buzz in the NCP that Munde was in Delhi to lobby to get back his ministry as it was the state BJP leadership that had forced Ajit Pawar to get him to step down as minister. But, in a social media post, Munde claimed he met Shah for an altogether different reason. He claimed he requested Shah to include the Prabhu Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga pilgrimage site, in Beed's Parli Vaidyanath, in the central government's PRASHAD scheme. Munde is not the only MLA from Marathwada, who could replace Kokate. Rajesh Vitekar hails from the region and was elected MLA from the Pathri assembly seat in Parbhani. Vitekar has been urging the NCP leadership to consider him for a ministerial position. "Vitekar is also a Maratha. His appointment will fulfill both criteria, caste and region," said an NCP office-bearer....