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Ajit Pawar (66), Maharashtra’s longest serving Deputy Chief Minister passed distant successful an aerial crash adjacent his location — Baramati, connected Wednesday (January 28, 2026), bringing his governmental vocation spanning 4 decades to an abrupt end.
Fondly known arsenic ‘Ajit Dada’, the Pawar scion had precocious buried hatchet with his mentor and uncle Sharad Pawar to contention the Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad civic polls jointly arsenic Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). In spite of a poll drubbing successful Pune, merger of the 2 NCP factions appeared to beryllium connected the cards arsenic the uncle and nephew precocious met successful Pune. Ajit Pawar is survived by his woman Sunetra Pawar (an NCP Rajya Sabha MP) and his sons – Jay and Parth.
In his 44 years of nationalist service, Ajit Pawar has followed his uncle’s footsteps successful authorities – from the sweetener cooperatives successful Baramati to six-time Deputy Chief Minister of the State. Known arsenic Maharashtra’s ‘forever CM-in-waiting’, scams, corruption and betrayal dotted his agelong governmental vocation arsenic helium transformed from his uncle’s shadiness to robbing him of his party on with its iconic awesome – the clock.
Here’s a look astatine his governmental highs and lows:
1959-1980s: Pawar scion
Born to Anantrao and Ashatai Pawar connected July 22, 1959 in Deolali town successful Ahmednagar, Ajit Pawar was introduced to authorities since its ‘Samyukta Maharashtra’ question days. With then-Congress person Sharad Pawar arsenic his uncle, Ajit Pawar was destined to travel his footsteps. Untimely death of his begetter forced him to driblet retired of assemblage and take attraction of his family.
Like his uncle, Ajit Pawar began his vocation successful the cooperatives sector, heading a sugar factory, Pune territory cooperative Bank earlier taking the electoral plunge from Baramati successful 1991.
1991-1999: Cooperatives to Maharashtra Cabinet
After Mr. Pawar’s [Sharad Pawar] unsuccessful bid arsenic Congress’ Prime Ministerial prime successful the aftermath of assassination of Rajiv Gandhi successful 1991, helium settled for a nationalist relation arsenic Congress’ Defence Minister. Succeeding him at his bastion – Baramati, his nephew Ajit Pawar contested the 1991 by-elections and won by 86,915 votes. Since then, Ajit Pawar has held onto the seat, adjacent trumping his nephew Yugendra Shrinivas Pawar in the 2024 polls by much than a lakh votes. The younger Pawar had the backing of the entire clan with even Sharad Pawar’s public-shy woman Pratibha campaigning for him.
Under his uncle’s Chief Ministership, helium held respective portfolios specified arsenic Agriculture, Power, Soil Conservation, Power and Planning, dilatory rising the ranks of the Congress party, gathering his estimation arsenic a detail-oriented politician.
As Mr. Pawar [Sharad Pawar] shook the foundations of the expansive aged Congress enactment by splitting distant and forming the NCP successful 1999, Ajit Pawar followed him along with prominent MLAs such arsenic Chhagan Bhujbal and Madhukar Pichad. He played a important portion successful stitching the NCP-Congress confederation by keeping the flock together.
Watch | Maharashtra Dy CM Ajit Pawar, 4 others, killed successful Baramati level crash
2000-2014: Stints arsenic Deputy CM and Irrigation scam
As Congress’ Vilasrao Deshmukh took complaint arsenic CM successful 1999, Ajit Pawar took reins of the Irrigation Ministry and aboriginal Water Resources. Under his helm, several projects were launched in drought-ridden Vidarbha portion worthy much than ₹70,000 crore. In 2004, erstwhile Deshmukh was retained as CM, Ajit Pawar continued arsenic Irrigation Minister but was soon embroiled successful a corruption scandal for allegedly bypassing norms portion awarding contracts, inflating task costs, expenditure irregularities.
After Deshmukh stepped down arsenic Chief Minister successful the aftermath of the 26/11 attacks successful 2008, Ajit Pawar retained his Ministries and continued arsenic Pune’s Guardian Minister nether the caller Chief Minister, Ashok Chavan. In 2009, erstwhile the Congress-NCP was re-elected for the 3rd time, Ajit Pawar added the Energy Ministry to his portfolio and was also sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister in 2010. He survived the shake-up of the State Government successful 2012 owing to the Adarsh Housing scam, arsenic the Congress replaced its CM Ashok Chavan with Union Minister of State Prithviraj Chavan arsenic his successor. Additionally, helium was fixed the Finance and Planning portfolios, isolated from Irrigation and Energy.
Known arsenic a ‘no-nonsense, tough-talking, brash‘ politician, Ajit Pawar clashed with the caller CM implicit his plans to redevelop Mumbai, the Lavasa task adjacent Pune. As the State’s Finance Minister, helium pulled up Ministers for reappraisal of their Departments prior to Budget preparation, accrued income tax revenue and expanded agriculture reforms. Mr. Chavan besides enactment Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank under administrators, irking Ajit Pawar and different NCP elder MLAs arsenic demands for probe into the irrigation scam grew. At the NCP-level, Ajit Pawar was instrumental in helming the party’s electoral occurrence successful zilla, panchayat samiti and municipal corporations across the State.
The 2012 State’s Economic Survey revealed that contempt spending ₹70,000 crore in irrigation projects successful the past decennary (1999-2009), lone 0.1% of the State’s imaginable had been utilised. Inspite of Mr. Chavan promising a ‘white paper’ connected the issue, Ajit Pawar resigned from the Cabinet and arsenic Deputy CM arsenic the Irrigation Department revealed a nonaccomplishment of ₹15,000 crore nonaccomplishment successful projects successful Vidarbha, Konkan and northbound Maharashtra.
However, wrong months, the promised ‘white paper’ exonerated Ajit Pawar with NCP main Sharad Pawar defending his nephew’s actions. In December 2012, he was reinstated arsenic Deputy CM and fixed backmost his portfolios. A Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) study unearthed outgo overruns amounting to ₹27,000 crores successful 242 irrigation projects under Ajit Pawar’s tenure. However, successful 2019, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) gave a cleanable chit to Ajit Pawar in several projects in Vidarbha, noting that his actions were not ‘malicious’.
2019-2023: Switching loyalties
After a stint successful the Opposition betwixt 2014-2019, Ajit Pawar jumped the gun amid talks betwixt Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena main Uddhav Thackeray and Congress main Sonia Gandhi to state with Devendra Fadnavis and instrumentality oath arsenic Deputy CM. A time aft the Congress-NCP-Shiv Sena alliance i.e. the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was formed with Mr. Thackeray announced arsenic its CM pick, Ajit Pawar produced a missive proclaiming the enactment of each 54 NCP MLAs and extended enactment to the BJP.
After President Ram Nath Kovind revoked the President’s regularisation imposed successful Maharashtra successful the post-poll impasse at 5:47 a.m. connected November 24, 2019, Ajit Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis were sworn successful as CM astatine 7:50 a.m. A behind-the-scenes study by The Hindu revealed that the BJP was already successful talks with Ajit Pawar amid NCP-Congress-Shiv Sena negotiations.
The Fadnavis-Ajit Pawar authorities fell isolated wrong 3 days arsenic the Pawar patriarch managed to regain the enactment of 44 NCP MLAs, portion the remaining 9 (excluding Ajit Pawar) were rounded up wrong the adjacent time and holed up successful a Mumbai hotel. Once Supreme Court ordered an unfastened ballot ballot of assurance successful the State Assembly, Ajit Pawar switched sides erstwhile again and was promptly sworn in as Deputy CM and fixed portfolios of Finance, Planning and State excise on with Guardianship of Pune.
2023-2026: Rebellion to reconciliation
In June 2022, Eknath Shinde rebelled splitting the Shiv Sena into two, walking distant with 38 of the 54 MLAs and reducing the Thackeray authorities into a minority. Ajit Pawar’s 4th stint arsenic Deputy CM was cut-short arsenic Mr. Shinde was chosen arsenic the Mahayuti’s CM portion Mr. Fadnavis chose to beryllium his Deputy.
On May 2, 2023, Sharad Pawar announced his intent to resign arsenic NCP chief, hinting at Ajit Pawar’s elevation to the role. However, 3 days later, Sharad Pawar revoked his resignation citing ‘strong sentiments’ among the cadre, disgruntling Ajit Pawar who had been successful the wings since 2014. The last stroke to his dreams to win his uncle as NCP chief came connected June 10, erstwhile Supriya Sule – Sharad Pawar’s girl and Praful Patel, Ajit Pawar’s adjacent aide were named arsenic the party’s moving presidents.
A period later, Ajit Pawar rebelled again for 1 past time and took oath arsenic Deputy CM for the 5th time. Splitting away with 32 NCP MLAs, Ajit Pawar took implicit the Finance Ministries portion elder NCP leaders Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Walse-Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Aatram Dharamraobaba Bhagwantrao, Dhananjay Munde, Aditi Tatkare, Sanjay Bansode, and Anil Patil were inducted into the Shinde Cabinet. Later, Ajit Pawar declared himself arsenic NCP main saying, “For us, Saheb (Sharad Pawar) is simply a deity, and we person heavy respect for him. You are 83, aren’t you going to stop? Give america your blessings”. His faction has besides been recognised as the NCP and awarded the timepiece awesome by the Election Commission of India. The Supreme Court lawsuit connected which faction is the NCP is ongoing.
After this Mahayuti – BJP-Sena-NCP won the 2024 State polls, Ajit Pawar was sworn successful arsenic Deputy CM for a sixth time, surpassing his ain grounds as the State’s longest serving Deputy. Though his faction failed to trump his uncle’s faction NCP-Sharad Pawar (NCP-SP) successful the Lok Sabha polls, the Ladki Bahin Scheme powered the Mahayuti to victory, with the NCP winning 29 of the 36 seats wherever the two factions clashed.
Amid discontent among the Sena, the BJP and RSS cadres implicit the clash of ideologies with the NCP, Ajit Pawar began distancing himself from respective communal statements spewed by BJP leaders. In a past bid to regain his turf, Ajit Pawar allied with the NCP(SP) for the Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad civic polls. Both Ms. Sule and Ajit Pawar presented a agreed beforehand and unveil their associated manifesto for the 2 corporations. As Senior NCP person Sunil Tatkare hinted astatine a merger of the two faction nationally, the Pawar clan’s efforts were wasted. The BJP turfed retired the NCP winning 119 of the 165 seats successful Pune and 84 of the 128 seats successful Pimpri-Chinchwad.
With Ajit Pawar’s tragic death, the aboriginal of his faction remains in question as Sharad Pawar now remains as NCP’s astir influential leader.
