Chandigarh, June 9
Two days after their names cropped up in the mysterious murder of a former village sarpanch, Haryana Transport Minister O P Jain and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Zile Ram Sharma resigned from their respective positions here today. Their alleged “role” in the murder would be investigated by the state Crime Branch.

The two submitted their resignations to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in Delhi this morning. Jain's resignation was forwarded to the Haryana Governor, Jagannath Pahadia, for approval. Jain’s resignation was accepted by the Governor later this evening. His portfolios of Civil Aviation, Hospitality, Transport and Tourism would now be held by the Chief Minister who accepted Sharma’s resignation.

Sources said that the Chief Minister, realising the allegations could snowball into a major embarrassment for his government, especially in the face of escalating public pressure, had asked them to step down from their posts yesterday evening. This action is likely to not only placate the aggrieved family but is also aimed at taking the sting out of the Opposition’s tirade of government soft-pedalling on controversies.An official spokesman said that their resignations had been sought to “ensure a fair inquiry into the allegations.”

Jain, elected as an Independent, had been “rewarded” with a Cabinet berth for supporting the Congress government right after it came back to power in October, 2009. With 40 MLAs to its credit, the Congress had emerged as the single largest party in a hung assembly, requiring six legislators to tote up a simple majority in the Vidhan Sabha. All seven Independent candidates had resolved to support the Congress in formation of the new government.

Later, they were “accommodated” in different capacities. Jain was the only MLA among the Independents to get a Cabinet berth, while three were “accommodated” as Ministers of State (MoS) and the remaining three were made CPSs. His departure has created a vacancy in the “full house” Hooda Cabinet.