Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and party member Praful Patel have resigned from the United Progressive Alliance government.

The ministers had on Thursday boycotted the meeting of Union Cabinet in New Delhi to show their unhappiness over party leader Sharad Pawar not being given the number two position in the government.

Sulking Agriculture Minister Pawar as well as Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel skipped the meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh amid a row over the pecking order in the government that has relegated the NCP chief to the third position.

"We did not attend," NCP spokesman D P Tripathi told PTI. He, however, did not want to give any reasons, merely saying "no comment".

While the Cabinet meeting was on at the PM's residence at 6 pm, Pawar was closetted with Patel and Tripathi at his residence here.

The row erupted after Pranab Mukherjee, who held the de facto post of the number two, quit the government to contest the Presidential poll.