Baramati: Maharashtra bade farewell to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday as his sons, Jay and Parth Pawar, performed his last rites in Baramati, a day after he died in a tragic plane crash. The funeral was held at the Vidya Pratishthan ground, where thousands of supporters gathered to pay their respects.
Jay and Parth lit the funeral pyre amid emotional scenes, surrounded by family members, party colleagues and local residents. Ajit Pawar was accorded a state funeral. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and BJP national president Nitin Nabin were among the senior leaders present.
Ajit Pawar, 66, was travelling in a Learjet 45 from Mumbai to Baramati on Wednesday morning. He was scheduled to address a series of rallies for the upcoming Zilla Parishad elections. The aircraft took off at 8.10 am and reached the Baramati region within minutes.
During the first landing attempt, the pilot aborted the descent after failing to establish clear visibility of the runway. The aircraft circled back and prepared for a second landing at around 8.43 am. Within a minute, air traffic control noticed flames near the runway as the jet veered off course. The aircraft crashed and caught fire almost instantly.
Five people lost their lives in the accident. Besides Ajit Pawar, the victims included his personal security officer Vidhit Jadhav, pilot-in-command Sumit Kapur, first officer Shambhavi Pathak, and cabin crew member Pinky Mali. The aircraft, registered as VT-SSK, was operated by Delhi-based VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd.
The government said on Thursday that the black box of the crashed aircraft has been recovered. According to an official statement, teams from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) reached the site on January 28. The Director General of the AAIB also visited the crash location the same day.
A black box records key flight data and cockpit conversations and is vital for determining the cause of an accident. Authorities said the investigation is progressing swiftly and will follow all laid-down procedures.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation said that all response and investigative mechanisms were activated immediately after the crash. It added that the probe would be thorough, transparent and time-bound, and would be conducted under the provisions of the AAIB Rules, 2025.
Flight tracking data showed that the jet followed a largely straight path towards Baramati, climbing to about 19,000 feet and maintaining that altitude while crossing the Western Ghats before beginning its descent.
As Baramati mourns its tallest leader, attention now turns to the investigation that will seek answers to one of Maharashtra’s most tragic aviation disasters in recent memory.
