Sanjay Raut Calls Ajit Pawar’s Plane Crash ‘Suspicious,’ Demands Probe Amid Political Tensions

Sanjay Raut Calls Ajit Pawar’s Plane Crash ‘Suspicious,’ Demands Probe Amid Political Tensions

This development highlights the ongoing rivalries within Maharashtra’s political landscape, where alliances and family ties within the NCP continue to shape the state’s governance.

By RMN News Service

New Delhi, February 2, 2026 – Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut has raised serious doubts over the recent plane crash that claimed the life of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, describing the incident as “dubious” and urging a comprehensive investigation into what he termed a “mysterious” death.

Ajit Pawar, the leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), perished in a fatal plane crash near Baramati on January 28, 2026. In the aftermath, the Mahayuti alliance swiftly appointed his wife, Sunetra Pawar, as the new Deputy Chief Minister. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has refuted rumors of an impending NCP merger, emphasizing that Pawar would have communicated any such intentions.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Raut alleged foul play, suggesting that “something happened behind the curtains” leading up to the crash. He claimed that Ajit Pawar had been actively working to reconcile the fractured NCP factions by initiating discussions with his uncle, Sharad Pawar, the party’s founder. According to Raut, this reconciliation effort had rattled certain political opponents who stood to lose power and influence.

Raut further accused members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of threatening Ajit Pawar with files related to the Sinchan irrigation scam just days before the tragedy. “He was shown files of the Sinchan scam and threatened. He gave a befitting reply to the threats. Within 10 days, he died in a plane crash,” Raut stated. Drawing a parallel to the controversial 2014 death of Justice B.H. Loya, he questioned, “Did someone do something here?”

The MP’s demands for scrutiny come amid growing public skepticism about high-profile deaths in Indian politics and judiciary. Critics have pointed to a pattern, citing cases such as the 2014 deaths of BJP leader Gopinath Munde and Justice Loya, the 2025 passing of former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, and the deaths of four prominent BJP figures—Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Ananth Kumar, and Manohar Parrikar—between 2018 and 2019. These incidents have often been linked to concerns over institutional independence.

While no concrete evidence of sabotage has emerged, Raut insisted that Ajit Pawar’s political prominence and ongoing reconciliation moves warranted a deeper probe into the crash circumstances. Authorities have yet to release detailed findings from the investigation.

This development highlights the ongoing rivalries within Maharashtra’s political landscape, where alliances and family ties within the NCP continue to shape the state’s governance.