A Nashik court has put on hold a two-year prison sentence handed to Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate, a leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), in a 1995 case involving fake documents submitted to secure government-quota flats. The same court will hear an appeal from Kokate and his brother Sunil Kokate against their conviction on Tuesday.
On February 20, the Nashik District and Sessions Court found the brothers guilty, sentencing them to two years in jail and fining each ₹50,000, while acquitting two other co-accused. The case stemmed from a 1995 complaint by the late former minister T S Dighole. On Monday, the Kokates challenged their conviction before District Judge-1 and Additional Sessions Judge N V Jiwane, who suspended their sentence pending the appeal and requested the prosecution’s response.
The court also granted them bail, requiring a personal bond and surety bond of ₹1 lakh each until the appeal is resolved. According to the prosecution, the brothers fraudulently obtained two flats designated for the Low Income Group (LIG) on College Road in Nashik’s Yeolakar Mala area, under the chief minister’s 10% discretionary quota. They allegedly misrepresented their income status and claimed they owned no property in the city to qualify.
Following Dighole’s complaint, the Sarkarwada police in Nashik filed charges against the Kokates and two others for cheating, forgery, and related offenses under the Indian Penal Code.
