Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash near Baramati in Pune district on the morning of January 28. The accident occurred when the chartered plane was trying to land at the Baramati airport. The plane made an emergency landing off the runway.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed that the 66-year-old man was on board the Learjet 45. Pawar was traveling with Vidip Jadhav, escort Pinky Mali and Personal Security Officer (PSO) Sumit Kapoor.
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Captain Sahil Madan was the Pilot in Command (PIC). Captain Yash and Shambhavi Pathak, First Officer (FO) were also on board. None of them survived.
Footage from the scene showed debris and smoke at the scene of the crash and rescue teams rushed to the scene.
Leaders from across India have expressed their grief and condoled. They described the accident as a deep shock and a great loss for the political scene of the state.
Ajit Pawar’s family
Ajit Pawar’s family, including his wife Sunetra Pawar, sons Partha Pawar and Jay Pawar and sister Supriya Sule, rushed to Baramati on hearing about it.
Ajit Pawar was a key leader in Maharashtra politics. He was a central member of the powerful Pawar family based in Baramati.
Ajit Pawar has been married to Sunetra Pawar, now a Rajya Sabha MP, since 1985. The couple has two sons.
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Their elder son Parth Pawar entered politics and contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Maval. Younger son Jay Pawar largely manages the family’s business interests and married Rutuja Patil in late 2025.
Ajit Pawar was the son of Anantrao and Ashatai Pawar. After his father’s untimely death, he took responsibility for the family. His elder brother Shriniwas Pawar runs automobile and farming businesses.
Before her death in 2017, his sister Vijaya Patilová worked in the media.
His uncle Pratap Pawar heads the Sakal Media Group. The family remains very influential throughout the state.
Cousin Supriya Sule represents Baramati. Grand nephew Rohit Pawar is also an MLA.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Supriya Sule won the Baramati seat after defeating her sister-in-law Sunetra Pawar in a rare family contest. This was the first time that two members of the Pawar family had faced each other directly in an election.
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Supriya Sule, representing Sharadchandra Pawar faction of NCP, got more than 7 thousand votes. Sunetra Pawar of Ajit Pawar’s NCP faction received 5.7 million votes.
Ajit Pawar later admitted that pitting his wife against his cousin was a political mistake. Despite the defeat, Sunetra Pawar returned to Parliament after being elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha in June 2024.
Sharad Pawar
The most prominent political figure in his family is his uncle Sharad Pawar, the founder of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Ajit Pawar shared a complicated political relationship with his uncle.
In November 2019, Ajit Pawar defied his uncle and was sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister alongside BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis in a surprise early move.
However, the government lasted only about 80 hours as Ajit failed to garner enough support. He returned to the Sharad Pawar camp within three days.
The final split came in July 2023. Ajit Pawar led a major division in the NCP, breaking away from most of the party’s MLAs and joining the Mahayuti government led by Eknath Shinde. He became Deputy CM.
In February 2024, the Election Commission recognized Ajit Pawar’s faction as the official NCP and awarded it the “clock” party symbol.
