Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal launched a scathing attack on the state government on July 21, 2025, accusing its ministers and ruling party leaders of insensitivity and arrogance amid a dire agrarian crisis. Sapkal demanded the immediate dismissal of Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate after a viral video allegedly showed him playing an online card game, Junglee Rummy, during the recently concluded monsoon session of the state legislature.

Sapkal highlighted the grim statistic of six farmers committing suicide daily in Maharashtra, criticizing Kokate for his apparent indifference. “The agriculture minister insults farmers, calls them beggars, and claims they misuse loan waivers for marriages. Now he’s seen playing games on his mobile. What’s wrong with protesting this?” Sapkal said, condemning the minister’s actions as a reflection of the ruling coalition’s apathy. Kokate, from the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, clarified he was skipping a game ad while checking assembly proceedings on YouTube, accusing the opposition of circulating selective footage to defame him.

The controversy escalated when Chhava Sanghatna activists protested in Latur on July 20, throwing playing cards at NCP state president Sunil Tatkare to demand Kokate’s resignation. Sapkal alleged that NCP workers assaulted the activists, calling it “mob rule” rather than democracy. “Not just MLAs, but ministers and office-bearers have become arrogant,” he stated, urging Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to act.

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Sapkal also accused Fadnavis of misleading the assembly over alleged honeytrap incidents involving state ministers and bureaucrats, claiming photographic evidence links individuals to ministers close to the CM. He demanded a high-level probe into the matter, insisting the government act against its own ranks for misconduct.

The opposition, including NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar and Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar, has seized on the video to highlight the government’s failure to address farmer suicides—reportedly 767 in the last three months—and issues like crop insurance and loan waivers. Sapkal’s remarks underscore growing tensions between the opposition and the Mahayuti coalition, comprising BJP, Ajit Pawar’s NCP, and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena.

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