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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

‘Vahini’ crowned NCP’s new ‘Maharani’

Mumbai:  Damning all political ‘pundits’ and ‘punters’ on the fate of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) after its President and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar’s numbing death in an air-crash on Jan. 28, his widow Sunetra Ajit Pawar seamlessly bounced into his place, both in the party and the government. Feeling orphaned and rudderless, the top-brass quickly elected Sunetra, 62, a Rajya Sabha Member, as the new NCP President, as the NCP Legislature Party Group Leader and as the Deputy CM of the state –...

‘Vahini’ crowned NCP’s new ‘Maharani’

Mumbai:  Damning all political ‘pundits’ and ‘punters’ on the fate of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) after its President and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar’s numbing death in an air-crash on Jan. 28, his widow Sunetra Ajit Pawar seamlessly bounced into his place, both in the party and the government. Feeling orphaned and rudderless, the top-brass quickly elected Sunetra, 62, a Rajya Sabha Member, as the new NCP President, as the NCP Legislature Party Group Leader and as the Deputy CM of the state – making her the first woman to occupy the august post – and ensuring continuity with change. Most political analysts – who crowed of an impending doom for the NCP – were left speechless and breathless at Sunetra’s dramatic catapult into three key positions, wielding full control, barely 72 hours after her husband’s passing. For the soft-spoken Sunetra, these official positions may be new, but she’s hardly naïve and boasts a quiet and commanding profile in public life, in the social and business fields, though she was rarely seen and hardly heard, letting Ajit Pawar bask in the limelight. Political Clan Hailing from a prominent state political clan, her reluctant political journey started in summer-2024 when the NCP fielded her against her ‘nanad’ (and Ajit Pawar’s cousin), Supriya Sule, a three-time veteran MP from the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency. It was intended to score political brownies over the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) of Sharad Pawar after the party he founded 25 years ago suffered a bitter vertical split in July 2023 - that even divided all the people in every home of Baramati. The 2024 Baramati LS contest rivalled that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Varanasi), but in the ‘Vahini’ ‘Nanad’ fight, the latter emerged victorious. However, Sunetra Pawar took it in her stride and she became a Rajya Sabha Member in June 2024 – which she quit today after taking over a Dy CM. Both Sunetra and Supriya enjoy cordial relations, both were MPs, both ensured the heat and dust of politics did not affect familial ties – as strictly ensured by Sharad Pawar since the past six decades – and was visible when the entire Pawar clan turned out to support her after Ajit Pawar’s sudden death. Away in Shadows Born in Ter, Dharashiv, Sunetra is the younger sister of former Minister and ex-MP Padamsinh B. Patil, and is a B.Com . Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, but preferred to stay away in the shadows. Silently working, Sunetra gradually built a public profile rooted in sustainable development, environmental conservation, women’s empowerment and rural transformation. Combining community-based involvement with institutional leadership, she played a significant role in shaping mass rural development models in the state. In 2010, she founded the NGO Environmental Forum of India (EFOI), that focused on environmental awareness and sustainable rural practices, introduced India’s eco-village model, integrating sanitation, renewable energy, waste management, green-bridge technology, solar technology and livelihood generation into rural development. It caught national attention after Katewadi village in Baramati was transformed into the country’s first eco-village in 2008. She led the Nirmal Gram (Clean Village) Campaign through self-help groups across 86 villages in Maharashtra, promoting organic farming, biodiversity conservation, water management and drought mitigation. Over the years, her initiatives bagged her multiple honours like the Sant Gadge Baba Swachata Abhiyan Award, Green Warrior Award, Cyber Gram Award, Nirmal Gram Award presented by then President Pratibha Patil, and recognition at the SACOSAN Summit under SAARC. In 2006, she took over as Chairperson of the Baramati Hi-Tech Textile Park Ltd, a multi-modal garment manufacturing cluster under the Centre’s Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks. Employing over 15,000 rural women, the park provides subsidies, training and skill-upgradation facilities, and ranks as her flagship contribution to women’s empowerment, with widespread recognition. Sunetra is a Trustee of Vidya Pratishthan, the premier educational institution with over 25,000 students, founded in 1972 by Sharad Pawar, and is a member of a Think Tank, the World Entrepreneurship Forum, France, since 2011, and is a Trustee-Advisor to an old age home in Baramati. Sunetra Ajit Pawar – propelled into high-profile duties three days after her husband Ajit Pawar’s death – is usually seen sporting pastel-shaded plain saris of different materials, silks, starched cottons, with light designs, accompanied by matching or colourful or printed blouses. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sunetra Pawar was allotted excise, sports, minority development and Aukaf departments, but not finance and planning which her late husband Ajit Pawar held.

Discussions on among allies for govt formation: Ajit Pawar

Updated: Nov 29, 2024

Ajit Pawar

Mumbai: Deputy Chief Minister and NCP head Ajit Pawar on Monday said discussions were underway among the Mahayuti partners to finalise a formula for the new government formation in the state.


Speaking to reporters at Karad in Satara district, Pawar also acknowledged the contribution of the government's Ladki Bahin scheme, which provides financial assistance to women, in the Mahayuti's victory in the just-concluded state assembly polls.


The NCP leader also assured that the alliance was working cohesively following its resounding victory in the state assembly elections.


Pawar paid tributes to Maharashtra's first chief minister Yashwantrao Chavan at his memorial in Karad on his death anniversary.


In the state poll results declared on Saturday, the Mahayuti, which comprises the BJP, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, bagged an impressive 230 of the 288 assembly seats.


The focus has been on BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is being seen as a strong contender to occupy the top post for the third time, as his party bagged 132 of the 149 seats it contested in the state.


Notably, Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena leader Deepak Kesarkar has said his party legislators feel Eknath Shinde should continue as the chief minister of the state, where the ruling Mahayuti scored a landslide victory in the assembly polls.


Ajit Pawar said, "We will decide what formula to work out on the cabinet formation among the three parties."


Reflecting on the elections, he acknowledged the contribution of the Ladki Bahin scheme in the Mahayuti's win.


"We cannot ignore that Ladki Bahin helped us in this election. We are grateful to them (women voters)," he said.


Defending the scheme, Pawar, who is also the state finance minister, further said, "Had I been opposed to the Ladki Bahin scheme, I would not have presented it in the House. I discussed the scheme with several retired finance officers before finalising it."


Pawar also dismissed concerns raised by some opposition leaders over the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), pointing out that polls in states like Punjab, West Bengal and Telangana, governed by their political opponents, have been conducted with the same system.


Commenting on members of same families contesting against each other during the elections, Pawar expressed annoyance over repeated questions on it.


He then asked, "Why was my close nephew fielded? Atram's own daughter was fielded against him, and even Rajendra Shingne faced a similar challenge. I don't want to comment further on this. I have got tired of apologising for fielding my wife against Supriya. Yugendra was in business, then why was he prepared to contest against me?"


In the Baramati assembly seat, Ajit Pawar was pitted against his nephew and NCP (SP) candidate Yugendra Pawar.


In Aheri seat, NCP leader Dharamraobaba Atram's daughter Bhagyashree Atram contested against him on NCP (SP) ticket.

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