There is a no question of Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh resigning, Nationalist Congress Party state chief and senior minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government said on Sunday against the backdrop of ex-Mumbai police chief Param Bir Singh's corruption allegation.
Following a three-hour meeting held at NCP president Sharad Pawar's residence in New Delhi, Patil said there is no need to divert attention from the main incident of bomb scare outside Mukesh Ambani's residence and the killing of Mansukh Hiran, a Thane-based businessman.
The focus is on these two events and after that appropriate steps will be taken, he said.
"The question of Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh resigning does not arise," Patil said.
During a media briefing earlier in the day, Pawar said Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will decide the fate of Deshmukh.
His comments came amid speculation in Maharashtra political circles that the state may soon have a new home minister.
The top brass of the NCP met in New Delhi against the backdrop of former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh levelling allegations of corruption against Deshmukh.
Singh has claimed that Deshmukh wanted police officers to collect Rs 100 crore monthly from bars and hotels in Mumbai.
Pawar held the meeting with senior leaders Supriya Sule and Praful Patel, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, NCP Maharashtra chief and Water Resources Minister Jayant Patil.
The NCP along with the Shiv Sena is part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra, and the home minister belongs to the Sharad Pawar-led party.
The allegations levelled by Singh against Deshmukh are serious and require an in-depth probe, Sharad Pawar said.
Before the meeting at Pawar's residence in New Delhi, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut had also met him. Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath also met Pawar separately.
Singh, a senior Indian Police Service officer, who was transferred to the low-key Home Guards on March 17 following the arrest of police officer Sachin Waze in the case related to the bomb scare near Mukesh Ambani's house Antilia, in a letter to the Maharashtra chief minister had claimed that he was made a scapegoat.
In the eight-page letter to Chief Minister Thackeray, Singh alleged that Deshmukh used to call police officers to his official residence and give them a "collection target" from bars, restaurants and other establishments.
The Maharashtra Chief Minister's Office, in a release on Saturday, said Singh's 'unsigned letter to Thackeray' was not sent from his official email ID and efforts were on to contact him to verify it.
