An emotional Sharad Pawar on Wednesday ruled out any conspiracy in the plane crash that killed his nephew and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, calling it a “pure accident”.
Ajit Pawar’s aircraft, a Bombardier Learjet 45 operated by private firm VSR Aviation, was flying from Mumbai to Baramati when it crash-landed and burst into flames in an open field near the runway around 8:48 am, officials said. Witnesses said the aircraft was barely 100 metres from the runway when it went down.
The 66-year-old leader was travelling to Baramati to campaign for the Zilla Panchayat elections.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Ajit Pawar’s personal security officer, an assistant, and two crew members were also on board at the time of the crash.
“There is no conspiracy involved. It is purely an accident. Maharashtra has suffered a huge loss today. A capable leader has left us. This loss can never be compensated,” Sharad Pawar said in his first reaction to the tragedy.
Ajit Pawar had broken away from his uncle in 2023 to join hands with the BJP, triggering a split in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). However, the two factions recently came together to contest the municipal corporation elections in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad.
“I feel helpless. Some incidents have no politics behind them. I have made my stand clear — there is no conspiracy in this,” the 85-year-old leader said, appealing for restraint.
His remarks came after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee called for a Supreme Court-monitored probe, alleging that investigative agencies were “compromised”. Several opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, supported the demand.
Sharad Pawar dismissed the call, saying, “A stand was floated from Kolkata suggesting politics behind this incident. There is nothing like that. I request everyone not to politicise this tragedy.”
Meanwhile, VSR Aviation owner V K Singh said the aircraft was “very well maintained” and ruled out any known technical failure. “There was absolutely no problem with the aircraft as far as we know,” he told reporters.
According to a government statement, the aircraft was initially cleared to land in Baramati but was forced to execute a go-around due to poor visibility. After receiving clearance again, the aircraft failed to give a mandatory read-back to Air Traffic Control (ATC) and moments later burst into flames near the runway.
Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said preliminary findings indicate that poor visibility played a role in the accident. Teams from the DGCA and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) have reached the site and begun a formal probe.
Ajit Pawar’s last rites will be conducted with full state honours.
He was the longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, holding the post six times under different governments led by Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde.
Ajit Pawar is survived by his wife Sunetra Pawar and sons Jay and Parth Pawar.
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