The Supreme Court stayed the conviction of Ajit Pawar-led NCP MLA and former Maharashtra cabinet minister Manikrao Kokate on Monday, in a 1995 cheating and forgery case, giving him an interim relief.
The relief from the apex court came days after the Bombay High Court refused to stay Kokate’s conviction, but suspended his two-year jail sentence and granted him protection from arrest even as it heard his petition against a verdict given by the Nashik district sessions court. This would mean that at least for the present, Kokate will not lose his status as a MLA and cannot be arrested until the hearing of the case is over.
On Monday, a Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, stayed Kokate’s conviction in the 1995 cheating and forgery case, and also issued notice to the Maharashtra government seeking its response.
Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared for Kokate and Advocate Aaditya Pande appeared for the State of Maharashtra while Senior Advocate Maninder Singh appeared for the complainant.
One of the petitioners in the case, Ashutosh Rathod said, “The Supreme Court has decided that Manikrao Kokate’s MLA status is still valid. But the Supreme Court has also given written instructions that he will not be able to hold any post like minister or corporation chairman. The court said that Manikrao Kokate will not be able to accept any constitutional post until the hearing of the case is over”.
The case is related to Manikrao Kokate and his brother Vijay Kokate obtaining government flats meant for the low-income group from the government in Canada Corner, a posh area in Nashik city, between 1995 and 1997.
Allegedly, they had informed the government that their income was “low” and that they did not have any other residence. However, it came to light later that they had cheated the government by submitting forged documents, after which officials had filed a complaint against them at the Sarkarwada police station in 1997 and the Nashik district court took cognisance of the matter.
Kokate’s conviction and two-year sentence by a magistrate in February 2025 were upheld by the Nashik sessions court last Tuesday, holding that he and his brother Vijay Kokate had cheated the Maharashtra government to allot them flats meant for the economically weaker sections of society under the Chief Minister’s quota.
Earlier, Kokate had moved the Supreme Court challenging an order of the Bombay High Court suspending his sentence but refusing to stay his conviction in the cheating case, after the court observed that the office Kokate occupies (as a cabinet minister) is not merely titular but “is a solemn obligation to uphold the rule of law and safeguard the collective interest of citizens”.
Kokate had moved the Bombay High Court seeking a stay on his conviction, requesting the court to consider his request for stay on his conviction as “an exceptional circumstance” since he could be disqualified as an MLA if not granted the relief, which would cause an irreparable loss to him. However, the high court refused to consider it as “an exceptional circumstance” and Kokate was forced to resign as Sports Minister.