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The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is set to propose Rajya Sabha MP Sunetra Pawar as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister following the death of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, with senior party leaders holding consultations on leadership succession and the future political course, according to party sources.

 

Sunetra Pawar, the wife of the late Ajit Pawar, is being considered both for induction into the state Cabinet and for contesting the seat vacated by him. The NCP, a constituent of the ruling Mahayuti alliance alongside the BJP and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, is expected to place the proposal before Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

 

Senior NCP leader and Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration Minister Narhari Zirwal informed that public sentiment favoured her induction into the ministry. “The public wants Sunetra Pawar to be brought into the state ministry,” Zirwal said.

 

Sources said senior leaders Praful Patel, Chhagan Bhujbal, Dhananjay Munde and Sunil Tatkare have met Sunetra Pawar as part of internal consultations following Ajit Pawar’s death. Patel, the party’s working president, is expected to take a leading role in steering the party during this transitional phase.

Also read: Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar cremated with full state honours

The proposal to induct Sunetra Pawar as Deputy Chief Minister is likely to be accompanied by discussions on the party’s broader political strategy, including the timing of a possible merger with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), which is expected to be taken up later.

 

Responding to questions on the merger of the two NCP factions, Zirwal said, “The two factions are already together. Everyone has realised that there is no point in remaining scattered and have to be together.”

 

Sources added that Ajit Pawar had been holding discussions with NCP (SP) leaders on reunification since the municipal corporation elections.

 

Ajit Pawar and four others were killed when the aircraft they were travelling in crashed barely 200 metres from the edge of a tabletop airstrip, triggering a sudden leadership vacuum within the party.

 

The developments come at a crucial juncture for the NCP as it seeks to maintain stability within the Mahayuti government while addressing internal succession and long-term organisational unity.