Mumbai, March 20 Facing criticism over her association with the rape-accused "spiritual leader" Ashok Kharat, Maharashtra State Commission for Women chairperson Rupali Chakankar submitted her resignation on Friday.
Chakankar, who is also the head of the NCP's women's wing, submitted the resignation letter to Deputy Chief Minister and party president Sunetra Pawar.
According to sources, she met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis earlier in the evening, and he asked her to resign.
In the letter addressed to Fadnavis, Chakankar stated that she was stepping down from the post with immediate effect.
She had been appointed to the post on October 15, 2024.
"Due to personal reasons, I am submitting my resignation from the post," the letter read, while also thanking the state leadership and colleagues for their cooperation.
Opposition parties were targeting Chakankar over her alleged association with the self-proclaimed spiritual leader Ashok Kharat, who was arrested in a rape case by the Nashik police earlier this week. Chakankar was a member of a temple trust headed by Kharat.