After the tragic death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a chartered plane crash, senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Maharashtra FDA Minister Narhari Zirwal hinted at a new role for Sunetra Pawar. Zirwal, a close aide of the late NCP leader, said the public wanted Sunetra Pawar to hold a cabinet berth in the state government.
Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance in the state along with the BJP and Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde.
Narhari Zirwal was responding to a question about the future of the Nationalist Congress Party after the death of Ajit Pawar. Referring to Sunetra Pawar, Narhari said that people want the “vahini (daughter-in-law)” to be included in the Maharashtra cabinet.
“We will talk about it with the leadership and take a decision,” Zirwal told a news channel after the funeral of the late leader in Baramati.
Regarding the potential merger between the two NCP factions, Zirwal Zirwal claimed that the groups are already united. He noted that members realize there is no point in remaining divided.
Ajit Pawar, 4 others killed
Ajit Pawar and four others were killed when a chartered plane carrying them crashed in Baramati in Pune district on Wednesday, January 28. In July 2023, Ajit Pawar joined the then state government led by Eknath Shinde, causing a split in the NCP founded by his uncle Sharad Pawar.
Meanwhile, a preliminary investigation into the plane crash revealed the crew’s last communications.
“The last words she heard from the crew were ‘oh s**t’,” a senior official from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said, according to the Hindustan Times.
Just minutes before the crash, according to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), the pilot informed air traffic controllers (ATC) of poor visibility around the runway. ATC told investigators that after the pilot reported “no runway visible,” he later informed an ATC operator that the runway was in sight.
The ministry detailed the sequence of events: “The aircraft reported final approach to runway 11 and the runway was not in sight for them. On first approach they initiated a go-by. After the fly-by the aircraft was asked for its position and the crew reported final approach to runway 11.”
“They were asked to report the runway in sight. They replied that the runway was not in sight at the moment and they would call when the runway was in sight. After a few seconds they reported that the runway was in sight. The aircraft was cleared to land on runway 11 at 0843IST; however, they did not return the clearance to land,” they said.
