 Summary of this article
- Ajit Pawar’s immediate family lacks the political heft to inherit his legacy, leaving senior leaders struggling to hold together the NCP (AP) without his authority and mass appeal.
- With weakened organisational strength and strained ties within the NDA, the NCP faces the challenge of rebuilding its cadres
- Recent tactical cooperation between the two NCP factions revived speculation about a merger. But Ajit Pawar’s absence makes the future of the Pawar legacy highly uncertain.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar died in a tragic plane crash on Wednesday morning. Authorities later confirmed that all five passengers on board, including Pawar, were killed in the incident. Pawar's last rites will be performed in Baramati on January 29 with full State honours. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and politicians across the party spectrum are likely to be present for his last rites.
Pawar’s family members and party activists flocked the Baramati medical college. NCP activists from both factions mourned his death by sloganeering “Ajit Dada parat yaa” (Ajit Dada, come back). Political leaders across parties and ideologies expressed grief and shock after the tragic plane crash. Social media is flooded with tributes to Pawar both from his admirers as well as political adversaries.
Pawar’s death sent shockwaves across Maharashtra’s political landscape. The questions on people’s minds: Who will take his political legacy forward and what is the future of the NCP(AP?
His sons - Parth Pawar and Jay Pawar aren’t well equipped to claim his political legacy. Parth’s name recently appeared in an alleged land scam deal in Pune. He contested Lok Sabha elections from Maval constituency but lost. Younger son Jay Pawar isn’t very active in politics. Both sons have companies, run business and social enterprises.
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Ajit Pawar's daughter-in-law Rutuja Patil isn’t active in politics either. His wife Sunetra Pawar lost the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 from Baramati - Pawar’s home turf, against cousin Supriya Sule. Later Sunetra Pawar was nominated to Rajya Sabha but she isn’t a mass-base leaders like Supriya Sule - from the rival NCP(SP) party.
Ajit Pawar’s nephew - Rohit Pawar is an MLA from Karjat - Ahilya Nagar. Another nephew Yungendra Pawar is active in local politics but the duo has remained with the Sharad Pawar faction.
In this context, the future of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) after Ajit Pawar is likely to be shaped by a complex interplay of leadership transition, ideological positioning, and organisational rebuilding. Ajit Pawar has, for decades, been the party’s most influential mass leader and excellent administrator, especially after Sharad Pawar gradually withdrew from active electoral politics. It’s a challenge before the NCP (AP) faction to fill the vacuum of a significant leadership of Ajit Pawar. Senior leaders Sunil Tatkare, Praful Patel, Hasan Mushrif may face organisational challenges to keep the party intact.
Ajit Pawar was a charismatic leader, he had a fan following, and significant influence among party activists. Sustaining this cadre is definitely a challenge before the party.
Ajit Pawar, 6-Time Maharashtra Deputy CM, Was An Ace Administrator
BY Ainnie Arif |
