Maharashtra Governor accepts Ashok Chavan’s resignation

MUMBAI - Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan has accepted Chief Minister Ashok Chavan’s resignation in the wake of the Adarsh Housing Society scam.

The Governor, however, asked Chavan to continue as the stae’s acting chief minister till a decision is taken on his successor by the Congress Legislative Party in the state.

Earlier, Chavan submitted his resignation to the Governor after Congress president Sonia Gandhi accepted his offer to resign this morning.

The decision to accept Chavan’s resignation came minutes after an inquiry report was submitted to the Congress President by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Defence Minister A K Antony.

Congress party sources said that the front runners to replace Chavan are Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Union Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan and Maharashtra Revenue Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, though Chavan is emerging as the favored choice.

Mukherjee and Antony will be in Mumbai today to attend the Congress Legislature Party meeting as central observers.

“Pending enquiry, his (Chavan’s) offer of resignation has been accepted. He has been asked to tender his resignation to Governor (K Sankaranarayanan),” Congress general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi had said earlier in a brief statement.

Chavan, 51, had offered to resign during a meeting with Gandhi on October 30 after it emerged that three of his relatives were members of the housing society in upmarket Colaba.

Gandhi decided to remove Chavan even before Mukherjee and Antony could submit a report on the housing scam.

She had asked both leaders to submit their report immediately after the scam broke out.

Chavan was given marching orders within minutes of US President Barack Obama leaving India after a three-day visit. (ANI)