Sanjay Raut claims BJP had threatened Ajit Pawar, raises doubts on late NCP chief's death

Mumbai: Days after Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister and NCP president Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash, the opposition parties including Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress ignited a political storm by raising serious doubts  over the accident with Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut drawing parallels with the death of Justice Brijgopal Harkishan Loya. 

On the day of the crash, West Bengal chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee smelled a conspiracy and demanded an investigation monitored by the Supreme Court, however, Ajit Pawar’s uncle and NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar snubbed her saying that it was an accident.

Now the Congress, which heads the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc and the Shiv Sena (UBT) - who are the Maha Vikas Aghadi partners in Maharashtra, suspected foul play. 

Raut alleged that the BJP had threatened Ajit Pawar with files related to the irrigation scam after he showed interest in merging the NCP and the NCP (SP). 

In fact, the NCP and NCP (SP) have contested the municipal corporation elections together in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad and Ajit Pawar was keen that the two parties should come together. 

“Something did happen behind the curtains. Ajit Dada had expressed his desire to return home (after reconciling with Sharad Pawar) following which BJP people allegedly threatened him with files from the irrigation scam. Ajit Pawar responded to these threats regarding the same files, and just 10 days later, he died mysteriously,” said Raut. 

However, he went on to add: “What do we understand from this? This reminds us of Justice Loya’s case. Did someone do something here?” - a reference to the death on 1 December 2014 in Nagpur which snowballed into a major political issue. 

“Questions will indeed be raised on the accident of Ajit Dada; questions should indeed be raised. The manner in which a tall leader like him died in a plane crash and the facts which are coming to light - it should be investigated, I think there is something dubious here. These questions are being raised by Ajit Dada's party. His death is suspicious,” Raut said.

Congress Legislature Party leader Vijay Wadettiwar said that 80% of the people in Maharashtra said that something fishy was going on. “A CID enquiry alone is not going to solve anything. Why was the pilot changed at the last moment?... How can negligence happen in the case of such a big leader... NCP leaders should demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi get this investigated...if this is not an accident, if there is a conspiracy behind this, then who does that point to?... If someone is talking like this, then they should also tell whom they are pointing towards... After Ajit Dada's death, the funeral rites weren't even completed, and everyone rushed towards seizing power,” said Wadettiwar, a two-time leader of the opposition in Legislative Assembly. 

Pawar aide too raised doubts 

One of Ajit Pawar’s close aides and MLC Amol Mitkari said that the pilot and schedule were changed at the last minute. “While take off there were six, while landing there were five…papers are intact on the ground but the people perished,” Mitkari said, adding that he will try to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and demand an appropriate probe.

BJP refute allegations 

BJP’s Rajya Sabha member and lawyer Ujjwal Nikam played down all allegations. "The allegations are all false. It's shameful that they are doing such petty politics on the departed soul. We all know it was an accident. It is a pure accident, and I don't think there is any conspiracy," he said. 

The incident 

Ajit Pawar (66),  popularly known as Ajit Dada, who was the deputy chief minister and NCP president, died at his hometown of Baramati on 28 January 2026 when the ill-fated Learjet 45 belonging to VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd, numbered VT-SSK, that had taken off from the General Aviation Terminal of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai crashed while landing at the Baramati Airport.

The Baramati taluka police station has registered an accidental death report (ADR) into the crash that claimed five lives and have transferred it to Pune-headquartered Crime Investigation Department (CID). 

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) are probing the air accident.

No need to reply to Sanjay Raut: Tatkare

NCP state unit president Sunil Tatkare said that Raut is unwell and hence he would not like to respond to what he says. “After the defeat in Vidhan Sabha polls, such people who lose mental balance speak like this,” he said when asked about the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader’s comments that NCP is controlled by Amit Shah.

“Two-and-a-half years ago, the NCP under Ajit Pawar, took a conscious decision to join the NDA. That decision has been ratified with victory in the Vidhan Sabha elections. “Everyone keeps criticising. Sanjay Raut’s criticism is no different... Wadettiwar has no right to speak about our party. First, he should worry about who will become the Mayor (in Chandrapur). The BJP has never told us what decisions we should take. The NCP is an independent party and we will make our own decisions.”

On the crash, he said: “The Chief Minister has ordered a thorough investigation (through CID) into this incident. The black box has been found.”