Deputy chief minister of Maharashtra state dies in plane crash

Ajit Pawar, deputy chief minister of India’s Maharashtra state, died in a plane crash along with four others, India’s aviation regulator said.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said that the plane, which took off from Mumbai, crashed at the airport in Pawar’s Baramati district, where it was heading.

The cause of the crash has not yet been officially confirmed.

Two members of Pawar’s team and two crew members were killed along with the deputy prime minister.

Images taken from the accident scene show the wreckage of the plane covered in smoke and flames.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X that he was “saddened” by the news of the accident.

“My thoughts are with all those who lost loved ones in the crash. I pray for strength and courage for the grieving families in this time of deep pain,” he wrote. In a separate post, he also paid tribute to Pawar.

Pawar, the nephew of veteran politician Sharad Pawar, who founded the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was an influential politician in Maharashtra.

His political career spanned decades and he served as the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra several times. A few years ago, he left his uncle’s party along with a few MPs and formed his own party, which the Election Commission of India later officially recognized as NCP.

His party was part of Maharashtra’s ruling alliance along with Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.