Maharashtra declares public holiday, 3-day mourning after Deputy CM Ajit Pawar dies in plane crash

Maharashtra on Wednesday declared a public holiday and announced a three-day state mourning following the death of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash near Baramati in Pune district.

The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis cancelled all his programmes and, along with Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, left for Baramati shortly after the incident.

“A public holiday has been declared in the state today, and a three-day mourning period has been announced,” the CMO said in a post on X.

In a separate message, Fadnavis said the death of Pawar, 66, in the crash was “extremely heartbreaking” and a “shock to the soul”.

“I have lost my strong and generous friend. This is a personal loss for me and an irreplaceable loss for Maharashtra,” the chief minister said.

Fadnavis said he shared the grief of Pawar’s family and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) as well as the families of four other persons who also died in the accident.

A communication issued by the protocol section of the General Administration Department said Pawar passed away on the morning of January 28.

As per government instructions, state mourning will be observed from January 28 to January 30, during which the national flag will be flown at half-mast on all buildings where it is flown regularly.

There will be no official entertainment during the mourning period, the department said.

All state government offices across Maharashtra will remain closed on Wednesday on account of the demise of the deputy chief minister, it said.

Pawar and four other persons were killed after the aircraft carrying them crashed near Baramati at around 8.50 am, officials said. The flight had taken off from Mumbai at 8.10 am and disappeared from radar around 8.45 am, according to Flight Radar data.

Eyewitnesses said the aircraft appeared unstable as it descended towards the runway.

“It took a round in the air, looked a bit unstable and, as it approached the runway, hit the ground hard and exploded,” a woman eyewitness told a news channel.

Another eyewitness said the plane seemed to be losing control at around 100 feet above the runway before bursting into flames, followed by four to five consecutive blasts. “It was a major fire. We later learned that Pawar was on the aircraft. It was shocking,” he said.

A police official said there were five persons on board at the time of the crash.

Superintendent of Police Sandip Singh Gill said a fire broke out after the crash and the occupants were rushed to hospital, where they were declared dead.

Pawar was travelling from Mumbai to Baramati to address public meetings as part of the campaign for the February 5 zilla parishad elections.