"Maharashtra has lost a dedicated leader": Sachin Tendulkar mourns demise of Ajit Pawar

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 28 (ANI): Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar expressed grief at the news of the tragic demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who was killed in a charter plane crash in Baramati on Wednesday morning.

In a post shared on X, Tendulkar wrote, "Very sad to learn about the untimely demise of Shri Ajit Pawar ji. Maharashtra has lost a dedicated leader who worked for the people, across the state. My heartfelt condolences to his family and friends. Om Shanti."

Ajit Pawar was the nephew of veteran politician and NCP founder Sharad Pawar, and the cousin of Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule.

The small charter aircraft, which took off from Mumbai around 8 am, crashed near Baramati airport during a landing attempt 45 minutes later. Visuals from the crash spot show fire and smoke spewing from the remains of the plane. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said all five passengers on board died in the crash.

Maharashtra Government said in a statement that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah both contacted Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadanvis and received information and updates about the plane crash.

Pawar was headed to Baramati to attend a public rally for the Zilla Parishad Elections when his plane crashed. Pawar was in Mumbai on Tuesday, where he attended a meeting of the Maharashtra Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure, chaired by CM Devendra Fadnavis. Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule and other officials were also present.

Ajit Pawar was the longest serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra non-consecutively. He served in the position for six terms within various governments. He had worked as deputy chief minister in the cabinets of Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde. He was married to Sunetra Pawar, with whom he has two sons, Jay and Parth Pawar. (ANI)

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