Two senior figures in India's ruling party resigned on Tuesday under heavy pressure over separate corruption scandals involving apartments meant for war widows and the Delhi Commonwealth Games. Ashok Chavan, the chief minister of Maharashtra, home to financial capital Mumbai, resigned Tuesday over his alleged role in a housing scam involving apartments reserved for widows that were sold to politicians and military officers. The chief organiser of the graft-tainted Commonwealth Games in October, Suresh Kalmadi, who emerged as a public hate figure for his role in the fiasco, also stepped down from his position as secretary in the ruling Congress party. Both politicians had embarrassed Congress, and the Press Trust of India reported that party president Sonia Gandhi had personally directed Chavan to step down. "Pending enquiry, his (Chavan's) offer of resignation has been accepted," ruling Congress party general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said in a brief statement. Only three days ago, Chavan was the first person to shake Barack Obama's hand when the US president landed in India.