Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday decried politics over the death of his cabinet colleague Ajit Pawar and said the cause of the aircraft crash that killed the latter and four others was under investigation.
He insisted that no one should spread rumours or give a different colour to this sensitive and tragic incident.
Pawar (66), who was also a Deputy Chief Minister, and four other persons on board a chartered aircraft were killed after it crashed barely 200 metres from the edge of a tabletop runway at Baramati airport in Pune district on Wednesday morning.
Speaking to reporters in Thane, Shinde, who heads the Shiv Sena, said with Pawar's demise, he has lost his "elder brother" who not only served as his colleague in different cabinets, but was also his deputy when he helmed the government from 2022 to 2024.
"It is a very painful incident...very sad and unfortunate for Maharashtra. The aircraft accident will be probed," the former chief minister said.
A thorough inquiry will be carried out to ascertain the exact cause of the fatal crash. The role of the airline company, relevant agencies, technical experts, the captain, or related officials will be investigated, Shinde added.
"However, it is not right to do politics or make allegations of a conspiracy in the name of this inquiry," Shinde said after visiting Baramati.
Demanding a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the death of Pawar, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that "all other agencies" have been "completely compromised".
Claiming that truth would not emerge through existing mechanisms, the TMC supremo said only a probe under the supervision of the Supreme Court would be credible.
Shinde pointed out that NCP (SP) president and Ajit Pawar's uncle Sharad Pawar has also clearly stated that this was not a case of any conspiracy, and was an accident.
Therefore, no one should spread rumours or give a different colour to this sensitive incident, asserted the Shiv Sena leader.
"This loss is not just of the Pawar family but of the entire state. I am feeling as if I have lost my elder brother," Shinde added, while describing it as a "dark day" for Maharashtra.
He said this is the time to firmly stand behind the Pawar family.
Shinde said several Union ministers, including Amit Shah, will attend the last rites of Pawar on Thursday.
Shinde said Pawar had a pure mind and was a very straightforward, fearless leader, with a firm grip on administration.
He recalled how Pawar, as the then-finance minister, made fiscal arrangements when his government (in 2024) decided to roll out the Ladki Bahin Yojana, which provides a monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 to poorer women.
"We (Shinde, Pawar and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis) worked as a team," Shinde emphasized, highlighting that their bond went far beyond political titles.
"He (Ajit Pawar) was older than me in experience and age. Today, we have lost a visionary, outspoken and studious leader. He was not only my colleague, but a very dear friend. This untimely demise is a shock to my soul," the Shiv Sena chief said.
Shinde recalled how Pawar, who handled finance and planning portfolio, managed the state's treasury without letting development work suffer.
Despite it being a three-party coalition government, Shinde emphasised that Pawar ensured the administration functioned as a single, united unit.
He remembered Pawar's "sharp and on-the-spot" decision-making and his quality of time management.
"Rather than dreamy presentations and mere rhetoric, he would examine practical matters. Whenever a concept came up, he would force everyone to think: how long would it last, and who would it benefit?" Shinde noted.
While Pawar was a strict disciplinarian who never broke the framework of etiquette, his "clear, soft humour and poignant jokes" were loved by everyone in the legislative assembly, he pointed out.
Shinde said Pawar was known to mentor juniors not by correcting their mistakes, but by teaching them how to prevent those mistakes from happening in the first place. He insisted that people's representatives study the long-term impact of their decisions on the lives of common citizens, the Sena leader added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
