Will not campaign for Sunetra, says Sharad Pawar

During a media interaction in New Delhi, the veteran leader said there was no need for him to campaign as his party has not fielded a candidate for the bypolls

Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Monday declared that he will not take part in deputy chief minister and NCP president Sunetra Pawar’s campaign for the Baramati assembly by-elections.

**EDS: SCREENGRAB VIA PTI VIDEOS** Mumbai: NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar addresses a press conference, in Mumbai, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (PTI Photo) (PTI02_04_2026_000012B) (PTI)

During a media interaction in New Delhi, the veteran leader said there was no need for him to campaign as his party has not fielded a candidate for the bypolls. He added that he took the decision as the head of the Pawar family and not as the NCP (SP) chief.

The bypolls for the Baramati assembly constituency, scheduled for April 23, were necessitated by the death of former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash on January 28. The NCP decided to field Ajit’s widow and political successor, Sunetra Pawar.

Despite being a rival party, the NCP (SP) decided not to field any candidate against Sunetra, who is also Sharad Pawar’s daughter-in-law. The NCP (SP) also urged all political parties to let Sunetra win unopposed as a tribute to the late Ajit Pawar.

However, Sharad Pawar made it clear that he will not campaign for Sunetra. “We have not fielded a candidate for the bypolls. So, when we don’t even have our own candidate, what is there to campaign for?” Pawar told reporters when asked if he would campaign for the bypolls.

In the 2024 assembly elections, the NCP (SP) had fielded Ajit Pawar’s nephew, Yugendra Pawar, against the seven-time incumbent. Yugendra lost to Ajit by a margin of over 100,000 votes.

Sharad Pawar also made it clear why he chose not to field a candidate in the Baramati bypolls. “In the Pawar family, there is a tradition: the role of the head of the family is not political, but non-political. And today, as the head of the family, that responsibility lies with me. Therefore, I decided not to contest this election,” said the 85-year old leader, who was in Delhi to take oath as a member of Rajya Sabha for a fresh term.

Pawar also supported the Congress’s decision to contest the Baramati bypolls, saying there was no reason to demand an unopposed election. “In a democracy, one must accept someone’s decision to contest the election,” he said.

The 85-year-old leader also questioned the “political maturity” of his grandnephew Parth Pawar, who criticised the Congress for fielding a candidate against his mother, Sunetra. “Politics requires a certain level of maturity. I cannot say, today, how much of that Parth Pawar possesses,” the NCP founder said.

The Congress is the only major party in the state that’s contesting against Sunetra in Baramati, amid widespread appeals for an unopposed election as a mark of respect for the late Ajit Pawar.