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Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar Killed in Air Crash

  • By Thetripurapost Desk, Baramati, Maharashtra
  • Jan 28, 2026
  • 633

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar passed away on Wednesday morning after his chartered aircraft crashed while attempting to land at Baramati Airport at around 8:45 a.m. He was 66.
According to official sources, five people died in the tragic accident, including Pawar’s security guard, two pilots, and a female crew member.
Ajit Pawar had departed from Mumbai at 8:10 a.m. and was scheduled to address four public rallies in connection with the Pune Zilla Parishad elections on February 5. Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said the pilot first attempted to land at Baramati Airport but aborted the landing as the runway was not clearly visible.
A second attempt was then made to land on Runway 11. However, the aircraft crashed short of the runway and immediately caught fire. Officials confirmed that no distress signal or “mayday” call was issued by the cockpit before the crash.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis reached Baramati soon after the incident. He announced a school holiday for the day and declared three days of state mourning. Pawar’s last rites will be performed in Baramati on Thursday at 11 a.m.
Ajit Pawar’s uncle Sharad Pawar, wife Sunetra Pawar, their two sons, and his sister, MP Supriya Sule, have all arrived in Baramati.
Meanwhile, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has launched a formal probe into the crash. One investigation team has reached the Delhi office of the aircraft operator, VSR Ventures, while another team has departed for Baramati to examine the crash site.
VSR Ventures stated that the pilot had over 16,000 hours of flying experience and the co-pilot around 1,500 hours. The company also claimed that there were no known technical defects in the aircraft.
Ajit Pawar was a senior leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which is part of the BJP–Shiv Sena coalition government in Maharashtra. The party currently has 41 MLAs in the Assembly. Besides Pawar, the NCP has seven Cabinet ministers and one Minister of State in the state government.
The sudden death of Ajit Pawar has sent shockwaves across Maharashtra’s political landscape, with leaders from across parties expressing grief and condolences.