Mumbai: The untimely demise of Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar in a terrible plane crash at Baramati on Wednesday has triggered speculation as to who will fill in his shoes as the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief.
The buzz is that NCP is seriously thinking of proposing Ajit’s widow Sunetra Pawar, who is currently a Rajya Sabha member, for the post of deputy CM.
A comment from NCP leader and Maharashtra Food & Drug Administration minister Narhari Zirwal further triggered speculation. PTI quoted Zirwal as saying that the public wants Sunetra Pawar to be inducted into the state ministry.
Senior NCP leaders Praful Patel, Chhagan Bhujbal, Dhananjay Munde and Sunil Tatkare have already
had consultations with Sunetra regarding the way forward, India Today reported quoting sources.
In all probability, Sunetra will contest from the Baramati Assembly constituency, which fell vacant after Ajit’s death.
NCP leaders are expected to meet chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to discuss future course of action, including Sunetra as deputy CM.
During the period of transition, working president of the party Praful Patel may be given the responsibility of steering the ship.
There was speculation in recent weeks that NCP could merge with NCP (Sharad Pawar), but those talks are likely to be taken up at a later stage.
According to Zirwal, the two NCP factions are already together. “Everyone has realised that there is no point in remaining scattered and have to be together,” the minister said.
Ajit split with veteran Sharad Pawar, his uncle who founded NCP in 1999, and his faction was awarded the original name and symbol of the party by the Election Commission of India. NCP joined the ruling Mahayuti coalition – comprising BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde) — in 2023, and was sworn in as deputy CM.