Unexpected developments have emerged in Maharashtra politics following the sudden demise of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Sunetra Pawar is set to take over the vacant post, with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) moving to hand over the party reins to her. She has reportedly given her consent to assume office as the new Deputy Chief Minister, with the swearing-in ceremony scheduled at Raj Bhavan today at 5 pm. Prior to taking the oath, she is expected to resign from her current Rajya Sabha seat.
Following her resignation, the NCP is considering nominating her elder son, Parth Pawar, to the Rajya Sabha seat, marking his formal entry into parliamentary politics. After taking office, Sunetra Pawar will need to get elected as a member of either the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly or Council within six months. She is likely to contest from the Baramati Assembly seat, previously represented by her late husband, Ajit Pawar.
Sunetra Pawar was born on October 18, 1963, in Dharashiv (formerly Osmanabad) district, Maharashtra. She married Ajit Pawar in 1985 and the couple has two sons, Parth and Jai Pawar. She has been serving as a Rajya Sabha MP representing the NCP since June 2024. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, she contested from the Baramati constituency against her niece Supriya Sule and, despite losing, established herself as a prominent leader within the party.
Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar was cremated with full state honors on Thursday at the Vidya Pratishthan ground in Baramati. His sons performed the last rites, and several senior leaders attended the ceremony, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, NCP Chief Sharad Pawar, and actor Ritesh Deshmukh, among others, paying tribute to the late leader.