Maharashtra Mourns Ajit Pawar's Tragic Death in Baramati Plane Crash

Several prominent leaders and dignitaries, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar, and actor Riteish Deshmukh, attended the funeral and paid their last respects.

A large number of people also gathered at the Vidya Pratishthan ground to bid a final farewell to the Nationalist Congress Party leader, reflecting the widespread public mourning over his demise.

Earlier in the day, full state honours were accorded to Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, on Thursday as his mortal remains were taken to the Vidya Pratishthan ground for the last rites.

Ajit Pawar's wife, Sunetra Pawar, and sons, Party and Jay, were present on the occasion. Senior Congress leader Sushil Kumar Shinde, along with his daughter Praniti Shinde, also arrived to attend the funeral set to take place at the Vidya Pratishthan ground.

Supporters of Ajit Pawar chanted "Ajit Dada Amar Rahe" as his mortal remains were brought to the ground. His son Jay Pawar, nephew Rohit Pawar, and other family members were also present.

Earlier today, officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and forensic teams reached the crash site in Baramati to investigate the plane crash that claimed the lives of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and five others. The aircraft had crash-landed in Baramati on Wednesday morning. NDRF personnel and DG are present here. NDRF personnel and Maharashtra DGP were also present at the site for the investigation.

The Pune Rural Police have registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) at the Baramati Taluka Police Station in connection with the crash and have initiated further investigation.

"Pune Rural Police have registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) at Baramati Taluka Police Station in connection with the air crash in which Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar lost his life. Further investigation initiated," a police official from Pune police said.

Union Minister Raksha Khadse termed the incident heart-rending and said Maharashtra would not see another leader like Ajit Pawar.

"The accident yesterday is heart-rending. Nobody had thought that something like that would happen. We were all sad to hear the news yesterday. I think Maharashtra will not have any other leader like Ajit Dada. He worked in the interiors. He was a good leader who played a big role in Maharashtra's development," Raksha Khadse told reporters.

Ajit 'Dada' Pawar died on Wednesday in a plane crash at Baramati airport, leaving behind a long career of ups and downs in politics. He was headed to Baramati to attend a public rally for the Zilla Parishad Elections.

Ajit Pawar was born on 22nd July 1959 in Deolali Pravara, Rahuri taluka, Ahmednagar district.

He was known among the people as "Ajit Dada" for his tireless efforts on behalf of the people of Maharashtra and his ability to stay connected to them and the soil.

In addition to making significant contributions to government administration, Pawar oversaw the management of various cooperative organisations, including Milk Unions and Federations and sugar factories.

Ajit Dada's leadership journey began and continued across institutions such as milk unions, cooperative societies, sugar factories, and banks, and took a new direction in 1991 when he was elected to the Lok Sabha. He would later vacate the Baramati seat for his uncle Sharad Pawar. Since then, he has held many more positions, including MLA, Minister of State for various critical government departments, and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

Ajit Pawar was the longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra non-consecutively. He served in the position for six terms within various governments. He had worked as deputy chief minister in the cabinets of Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde.

In November 2019, he engineered a split in the NCP, joined a government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, and became the Deputy Chief Minister. In February 2024, the Election Commission awarded the party name and symbol to the faction headed by Ajit Pawar.

Despite this, Ajit Pawar was known to be very close to his uncle, Sharad Pawar, under whose guidance he began his political career. In the recently held Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Elections, the two rival factions of the NCP formed an alliance and presented a united development agenda for Pune.

Ajit Pawar was famed for his straightforward approach and frankness. He is survived by his wife, Sunetra Pawar and two sons, Jay and Parth Pawar.

- ANI