I was to travel with Ajit Pawar on day of fatal crash: Ex-minister Mahadev Jankar

Mumbai: Former Maharashtra minister Mahadev Jankar has claimed that he was scheduled to travel with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on the day his aircraft crashed in Baramati last week, but could not join as he reached Mumbai late.

Ajit Pawar and four other persons on board a chartered aircraft from Mumbai were killed when it crashed barely 200 metres from the edge of a tabletop runway at Baramati airport in Pune district at around 8:45 am on January 28.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Jankar, who heads the Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RSP), said he had spoken to NCP leader Pawar a few days before the accident and had been invited to travel with him to Baramati in the same plane.

"However, I reached Mumbai late and could not join Ajit Pawar on his early flight to Baramati. It is a very unfortunate incident and Pawar's death is a major loss for the state," he said.

Dhangar (shepherd) community leader Jankar heads the RSP, which has pockets of influence in some districts in western Maharashtra, Vidarbha, and Marathwada regions.

He had served as Minister for Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development, and Fisheries in 2016 in the BJP-led government.