Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal, under a cloud over his kin’s alleged involvement in bribery for a plum railway board posting, yesterday skipped a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

There is speculation he may be asked to quit. Opposition parties, including the BJP and the CPI-M have demanded Bansal’s resignation after his nephew Vijay Singla was arrested by the CBI for allegedly taking a bribe for the appointment of a member of the Railway Board.