Sunetra Pawar, the wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, is set to take on a prominent role following her husband’s tragic death in a plane crash on Wednesday morning. The decision to appoint her as Deputy Chief Minister was made solely by the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Sharad Pawar, Ajit Pawar’s uncle and NCP-SP chief, revealed that the family was not consulted.

Addressing the media in Baramati, Sharad Pawar stated, “I don’t know,” when asked about being involved in the decision-making process for Ajit Pawar’s successor. He further clarified that he learned about the planned oath ceremony on Saturday evening through news reports. “We don’t know about the swearing-in. We got to know about it through the news. I have no idea about the swearing-in,” he added.

Sharad Pawar’s remarks underscore a clear separation between family matters and political decisions. The development comes after the NCP experienced a split in 2023, when Ajit Pawar broke away from his uncle’s faction to establish his own political path within Maharashtra.

This appointment positions Sunetra Pawar to carry forward her late husband’s political legacy, even as senior party leaders maintain a cautious distance from the process.

Sunetra Pawar is likely to take oath as Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister on Saturday evening, marking a decisive shift in her political journey that has largely remained out of the public eye for nearly four decades.

Born Sunetra Patil, she was familiar with politics long before marrying Ajit Pawar in 1985. Her father Bajirao Patil was a prominent local leader, and her brother also remained active in public life. Despite this background, Sunetra Pawar chose not to contest elections for years, instead contributing to political decision-making quietly as the Nationalist Congress Party played a key role in Maharashtra and national politics.

That changed after the NCP split in 2023, when Ajit Pawar broke away from his uncle Sharad Pawar and laid claim to the party’s name and symbol. A year later, Sunetra Pawar entered electoral politics, contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Baramati against her sister-in-law Supriya Sule. She lost the contest by a margin of over 1.5 lakh votes but was elected to the Rajya Sabha a few months later.

Her political trajectory took a dramatic turn on Wednesday after a plane crash claimed the life of Ajit Pawar and four others. The development has placed Sunetra Pawar at the centre of Maharashtra’s political landscape.

At 62, and still coping with personal loss, she is expected to take charge as the NCP legislature party leader and assume the role of deputy chief minister, stepping into a position long associated with her husband’s political influence.

Education and public initiatives

Born in October 1963, Sunetra Pawar holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from SB College in Aurangabad. After her marriage, she was associated with the Baramati High-Tech Textile Park, where she was involved in decision-making related to production, investment, employment, and women’s empowerment.

She is also a trustee of Vidya Pratishthan, an educational group that caters to over 25,000 students.

In 2010, she founded the Environmental Forum of India, which played a role in developing Katewadi village as the country’s first eco-village, focusing on water conservation and solar energy use. Her work has included grassroots campaigns on biodiversity protection, water management, and drought mitigation.

Swearing-in and political challenges ahead

Sunetra Pawar is expected to be sworn in at 5 pm on Saturday, following discussions within the party that led to her agreeing to take up the responsibility.

NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal said that many within the party believe she should be given the role, adding that the vacant deputy chief minister’s post could be filled by her. He also indicated that a meeting would be held to elect the legislature party leader.

NCP working president Praful Patel said the party was united on the decision.

One of the key political questions ahead of Sunetra Pawar’s tenure will be whether the NCP should pursue reunification with the Sharad Pawar faction. Party sources have said Ajit Pawar was working towards a reunion before his death, though the political dynamics may now shift.

Any reunification would also raise questions about future leadership and political alignment, as Ajit Pawar’s faction is currently aligned with the BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, while the Sharad Pawar group remains with the Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Friday launched a sharp attack on Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma over his recent remarks on ‘Miya’ voters, calling them “shameless” and “dishonest” and accusing him of falsely invoking the authority of the Supreme Court.

Gogoi’s criticism came after Sarma claimed that four to five lakh ‘Miya’ votes would be removed from the electoral rolls during the special intensive revision ahead of the Assam Assembly elections due in April. The term ‘Miya’ is commonly used as a derogatory reference to Muslims perceived as illegal migrants from Bangladesh.

Gogoi alleges misuse of Supreme Court’s name

In a post on X, Gogoi accused Sarma of deliberately misrepresenting the Supreme Court’s observations to justify his remarks. He said the chief minister had claimed to rely on the “court’s own words” from a case involving former Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal.

“This is a blatant lie,” Gogoi wrote, asserting that the court neither authored nor adopted the words being attributed to it. He alleged that presenting an executive report as a judicial pronouncement amounted to deliberate contempt.

“For a chief minister to falsely attribute words to the court is not just contemptuous; it is an assault on constitutional propriety and institutional integrity,” Gogoi said.

Sarma’s remarks trigger political backlash

Earlier this week, Sarma had said that the special revision of electoral rolls was aimed at preventing ‘Miyas’ from voting, adding that it was his “job to give trouble to Miya people”. A day later, he also directed the Public Works Department to prioritise local workers over ‘Miyas’ in hiring.

The comments triggered a political storm, with opposition leaders accusing the BJP government of targeting a particular community.

Leader of the opposition in the Assam Assembly, Debabrata Saikia, wrote to the Chief Justice of India seeking suo motu cognisance of what he described as the misuse of the electoral roll revision process.

Chief minister offers clarification

Following the backlash, Sarma issued a clarification, stating that he had used the term ‘Miya’ specifically in reference to illegal Bangladeshi Muslim immigrants. He also claimed that his remarks were supported by observations of the top court referring to “demographic invasion” in Assam.

The issue of Bangladeshi immigration has long been politically sensitive in the state. Assam shares a porous border with Bangladesh, and difficult terrain has historically contributed to cross-border movement over several decades. Recent diplomatic tensions between Delhi and Dhaka following political changes in the neighbouring country have further heightened concerns along the border.