Ajit Pawar Given Full State Honours; Crash Investigation Moves Forward

Investigators probing the plane crash that killed the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and five others have recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, even as Baramati prepares for his funeral with full state honours.

Black boxes recovered; probe underway

Officials investigating the plane crash that claimed the life of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and five others have recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from the accident site in Baramati.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) confirmed the recovery of the equipment on Thursday. Earlier in the day, officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), forensic teams, and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) reached the crash site to begin a detailed investigation.

The aircraft had crash-landed at Baramati airport on Wednesday morning while Pawar was travelling to attend a public rally for the Zilla Parishad elections.

Police register ADR

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

Funeral procession and Antim Yatra

The funeral procession began from the Vidya Pratishthan campus (Gadima), passed through the city to allow people to pay their respects, and culminated at the Vidya Pratishthan Ground, where the funeral was scheduled for 11 am.

Pawar’s mortal remains were carried in a decorated rath for the ‘Antim Yatra’. The chariot was adorned with flowers and featured his image along with a board reading “Swargiya Ajitdada Pawar amar rahein”.

Leaders mourn loss

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

“The accident is heart-rending. Maharashtra will not have any other leader like Ajit Dada. He worked in the interiors and played a big role in the state’s development,” she told reporters.

A towering political legacy

Born on July 22, 1959, in Deolali Pravara in Ahmednagar district, Ajit Pawar was widely known as “Ajit Dada” for his grassroots connect and straightforward political style.

His leadership journey began in cooperative institutions such as milk unions, sugar factories, and banks, before he entered Parliament in 1991 as a Lok Sabha MP. He later vacated the Baramati seat for his uncle Sharad Pawar and went on to serve multiple terms as MLA and minister.

Ajit Pawar was Maharashtra’s longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister on a non-consecutive basis, holding the post six times across governments led by Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray, and Eknath Shinde.

In 2019, he engineered a split in the NCP and briefly joined a BJP-led government. In February 2024, the Election Commission awarded the party name and symbol to the faction led by him. Despite political differences, he remained personally close to his uncle Sharad Pawar.

Ajit Pawar is survived by his wife Sunetra Pawar and sons Jay and Parth Pawar.

(With inputs from ANI)