Maharashtra politics is witnessing a major transition following the death of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar, with his wife Sunetra Pawar scheduled to take oath as Deputy Chief Minister on Saturday evening. She will assume leadership of the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP, while the prospect of a merger with the Sharad Pawar-led group remains unclear, with clarity expected in the coming days.
Sunetra Pawar was born on October 18, 1963, in Osmanabad (now Dharashiv) district and hails from a politically active family. Her father Bajirao Patil was a political leader, while her brother Padamsingh Patil served as a former Maharashtra minister and Lok Sabha MP. A Bachelor of Commerce graduate from Aurangabad, she married Ajit Pawar in 1985 and the couple have two sons, Parth Pawar and Jay Pawar.
In 2010, Sunetra founded the Environmental Forum of India (EFOI), promoting organic farming and environmental conservation. Under her leadership, the organisation implemented sustainable rural development initiatives across Maharashtra, focusing on eco-friendly agriculture and waste management. Her contributions to environmental protection earned her the Green Warrior Award.
Though she largely stayed away from active politics for several years, Sunetra remained involved in social initiatives, serving as a trustee of Sharad Pawar-founded Vidya Pratishthan, which educates over 25,000 students, and as a Senate member of Savitribai Phule Pune University since 2017. She formally entered electoral politics in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Baramati on behalf of the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction), but lost to her sister-in-law Supriya Sule, before being nominated to the Rajya Sabha on June 18, 2024.
Following Ajit Pawar’s death in a plane crash on January 28, the NCP legislature party unanimously elected Sunetra Pawar as its leader. She is set to become Maharashtra’s first woman Deputy Chief Minister and will be required to secure election to either the state Assembly or Legislative Council as per constitutional norms, after which she is expected to resign from her Rajya Sabha seat. She is likely to contest from the Baramati Assembly constituency, previously held by Ajit Pawar.