Mumbai: Sunetra Pawar, wife of late deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, has consented to take oath as Maharashtra’s new deputy chief minister, marking a swift dynastic succession in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) just days after her husband’s tragic death in a plane crash on January 28.
According to sources, the announcement – confirmed by party leaders following internal consultations — positions the Rajya Sabha MP to head the NCP legislature party and retain key portfolios like excise and sports, thereby, ensuring continuity in the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance ahead of February local polls.
Sources said senior NCP leaders, including working president Praful Patel and Chhagan Bhujbal, revealed Sunetra’s decision to accept the proposal during Friday meetings at Baramati with the Pawar family and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. “She has accepted the proposal after discussions; no opposition within the party,” Patel stated, with Bhujbal adding her elevation as “finalized” following a unanimous CLP push.
Sources said the oath-taking is slated for Saturday, alongside a cabinet rejig where Fadnavis taking over the finance portfolio ahead of the budget session, signaling strategic stability for Pune zilla parishad elections on February 7.
Sunetra, 62, a social activist elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha in 2024 after contesting Baramati Lok Sabha, steps into the vacuum left by her husband’s demise who orchestrated the 2023 BJP split securing 41 MLAs. Sources said her role aims to deter defections, safeguard the party symbol under Election Commission scrutiny, and potentially contest Ajit’s assembly seat. Sources indicate Patel’s interim guidance, with merger talks to NCP-SP paused.
Fadnavis hailed her as a “capable leader honoring Ajitji’s legacy” of irrigation and development. Amid DGCA probe into the Learjet crash—citing pilot error in fog—Sunetra’s ascent reshapes Maharashtra’s power dynamics, bolstering Mahayuti’s arithmetic for 2029 state polls.
