ALBAWABA- Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others were killed on Wednesday when their Learjet 45XR crashed during an attempted emergency landing at Baramati airstrip in Pune district, authorities confirmed.
The aircraft, flying from Mumbai to Baramati, Pawar’s home constituency, burst into flames upon impact. CCTV footage captured a massive fireball as the plane skidded off the runway. All onboard, including two pilots and two other passengers, died; the identities of the latter have not yet been released pending family notification.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has launched an investigation, focusing on the flight’s final 26 minutes to determine whether mechanical failure, pilot error, or adverse weather played a role.
Rescue teams recovered the bodies, which were severely charred. Pawar’s identification was confirmed through forensic analysis and personal effects.
Scattered wreckage, ashes all over: Aerial shots of Ajit Pawar's jet crash site
— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) January 28, 2026
Scattered wreckage of the Bombardier Learjet 45 (VT-SSK), which Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was travelling in earlier today, along with ashes, is all that remains at the edge of the… pic.twitter.com/ziA08yBkXt
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed profound grief, calling the loss “irreparable” for both the state and the nation. A state funeral is scheduled for Thursday in Baramati, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah expected to attend.
Ajit Pawar, born in 1959, was a veteran politician and nephew of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) founder Sharad Pawar. He served multiple terms as Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister, overseeing key portfolios including finance and irrigation, and played a pivotal role in rural development and water management projects.
Pawar’s political career, spanning over four decades, included navigating factional splits within the NCP, most notably his 2023 alignment with the BJP-led coalition.
