Mumbai : In an embarrassment for the ruling NCP, Maharashtra Minister of State for Agriculture Gulabrao Deokar on Monday evening faced the prospect of re-arrest after the Bombay High Court cancelled his bail in the Jalgaon housing scam case, even as the Opposition BJP rooted for his dismissal from the State Government.

Deokar found himself in a tight corner, as his State NCP leadership asked him to put in resignation from the Prithviraj Chavan Cabinet. Till late in the night, there was no official word that Deokar had indeed resigned.

Trouble began for Deokar after the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court on Monday afternoon rejected the bail that a Jalgaon Sessions Court had granted him on May 21, while hearing a petition filed by Premanand Jadhav and two others.

Much to Deokar’s discomfort, Justice TV Nalavde of the Aurangabad bench also rejected Deokar’s plea, seeking four weeks’ time to move the SC against the High Court’s ruling.

The HC bench agreed with the petitioners’ contention that the lower court had granted bail to Deokar, by not taking into consideration a prima facie case made out and evidence produced against him by the prosecution.

Within hours of the Aurangabad bench of the High Court cancelled Deokar’s bail, leader of the Opposition Eknath Khadse of the BJP said: “Now that the High Court has not only cancelled his bail, but it has also denied him time to move the apex court, Deokar should forthwith surrender to the police. If he does not do so, the police should arrest him. Similarly, since he does not have the moral right to continue in office, Deokar should resign or be dismissed from the State Cabinet immediately”.

State BJP secretary Girish Mahajan also made a similar statement. Given that the NCP has already come under fire for allegations of corruption faced by its two senior Ministers Chhagan Bhujbal and Sunil Tatkare, a chastened State party president Madhukar Pichhad asked Deokar to put in his papers to save further embarrassment for the party.

Deokar, who was arrested earlier on May 21 on charges of involvement in the Rs 29.59 crore in the 1997 Gharkul low-cost housing scam, was initially sent to judicial custody till May 30 and later released on bail on a surety of Rs 50,000.