Aaditya Thackeray at opposition 'folk songs' stir against Maharashtra minister. Watch

The opposition camp has demanded agriculture minister Abdul Sattar's resignation over a land regularisation order he had passed when he was a minister in the former Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

Maharashtra opposition leaders on Tuesday staged a demonstration on the steps of Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur amid row over state government policies, and irregularities by state ministers. They took out a foot march is ‘warkaris’ style and accused chief minister Eknath Shinde-led regime of indulging in corruption. Shiv Sena legislator and former state minister Aaditya Thackeray, Congress leader Nana Patole and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Ajit Pawar were among those who joined the demonstration.

Maharashtra opposition leaders ring bells and sing folk songs on Tuesday to protest against the state government. (Screengrab/ANI video)

On Tuesday, opposition members led Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Ambadas Danve took out a foot march in the Vidhan Bhavan complex like 'warkaris' do while setting out on a pilgrimage to a temple of Lord Vitthal in Pandharpur town. They rang bells and chanted slogans, accusing CM Shinde and some state ministers including Sattar of indulging in corruption. Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Ajit Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Aaditya Thackeray, Congress leader Nana Patole and others joined the demonstration. The leaders set out on a pilgrimage to a temple of Lord Vitthal in Pandharpur town, ringing bells and singing folk songs. In a video shared on Twitter by news agency ANI, Thackeray was also spotted clanking the bells and singing songs.

The stir was a continuation of the ruckus that gripped both Houses of Maharashtra assembly on Monday, and led to their adjournment. The opposition camp demanded agriculture minister Abdul Sattar's resignation over a land regularisation order he had passed when he was a minister in the former Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

Sattar has come under the radar for regularising more than 37 acres of ‘gairan’ (grazing) reportedly valued at ₹150 crore in favour of a private person despite a Supreme Court order banning any such move. In this regard, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court issued a notice to the minister last week.

Thackeray said that it was necessary for Sattar to step down as a minister in wake of the corruption charges against him. “We have all the documents and evidence to prove his misdeeds - be it the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) scam or objectionable remarks against NCP MP Supriya Sule,” he was quoted as saying by ANI.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Monday that if Sattar is indeed at fault, he won't get the BJP leader's support, Loksatta reported.

The controversy surrounding Sattar comes only days after opposition members also demanded Shinde's recognition after the Nagpur bench of the HC ordered status quo on a decision pertaining to his allotment of land to private persons that were originally meant for slum dwellers. The CM had allegedly done this when he was a minister in the MVA government.

Shinde, however, dismissed all of these charges and the HC on December 22 accepted the CM's recent withdrawal of the regularisation order and stated it was treating the matter as closed.

(With inputs from PTI)