Ajit Pawar plane crash news highlights: Zilla Parishad polls deferred to Feb 7 following Ajit Pawar’s death

• In a statement posted on X, the ministry of civil aviation said the black box of the plane has been recovered. “Ensuring a thorough, transparent, and time-bound inquiry remains a top priority. A team of three officers from AAIB, Delhi, and another team of three officers from the DGCA, Mumbai Regional Office, reached the crash site on 28 January,” the ministry said.

• Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar’s sons, Parth and Jay, performed the last rites of their father in Baramati. Family members paid their last respects. Maharashtra CM Fadnavis and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were also present at the funeral, where thousands gathered to pay their last respects.

• Aircraft maker Bombardier has said it will support the authorities investigating the crash of its Learjet 45 plane at Baramati. “We, at Bombardier, are deeply saddened by this tragic event and extend our sincerest sympathies to all those affected,” it said.

• Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA) has expressed its condolences to the families of those who died in the Baramati plane crash and urged everyone to refrain from spreading rumours or creating narratives about the accident, PTI reported.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was keen on the merger of the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and it was about to materialise soon, a close associate of the deceased leader claimed on Thursday.

Kiran Gujar, who has been associated with Ajit Pawar since before his entry into politics in the mid-1980s, told PTI that Pawar had confided in him about this only five days before Wednesday's fatal plane crash.

"He was hundred per cent keen on merging both the factions. He had told me five days ago that the entire process was complete and the merger was imminent in the next few days," Gujar said.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Police grounded four drones found flying without permission during the movement of VVIPs at the venue of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister late Ajit Pawar's funeral in Baramati town in Pune district on Thursday, PTI reported citing officials.

Over two lakh supporters and prominent political leaders across the party lines and from various parts of the country attended the funeral.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Election strategist and Design Boxed co-founder Naresh Arora on Thursday said, “That he would pass away in such tragic circumstances is shocking for all of us. I had interacted with him earlier that morning, and we were supposed to speak after he landed."

"In fact, when he was about to land, I sent him a text, but it was not getting delivered. I then asked my team whether the plane had landed, and they informed me that the plane had just crash-landed at that very moment.” PTI quoted Arora as saying.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: After the state funeral of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday, the route leading to the crash site, near the Baramati airstrip in Pune district, was filled not only with forensic and aviation experts but with commoners.

People came from far-off areas as they wanted to visit the spot where their "Dada" (as Ajit Pawar was called by his supporters) took his last breath.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA) has expressed its condolences to the families of those who died in the Baramati plane crash and urged everyone to refrain from spreading rumours or creating narratives about the accident, PTI reported.

"We firmly believe that both pilots would have exercised the highest standards of professionalism and did everything humanly possible, to their very last breath, to safeguard the aircraft and those on board," the association said in a release.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Canadian aircraft maker Bombardier, which manufactures the Learjet 45, said, “We, at Bombardier, are deeply saddened by this tragic event and extend our sincerest sympathies to all those affected.”

"We cannot comment on the potential cause of this accident until the investigation is complete, and we will support investigation authorities, including with any recommendations if needed," a Bombardier spokesperson told PTI in an emailed statement.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Asserting that the government has zero tolerance for air safety issues, Union Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu on Thursday said the investigation into the plane crash that killed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others would follow a time-bound approach, PTI reported.

Speaking to reporters, he said the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) and the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had arrived at the site, and the Black Box of the ill-fated aircraft had been recovered.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Voting for elections to 12 zilla parishads and 125 panchayat samitis in Maharashtra will now take place on February 7, instead of February 5 as announced earlier, PTI reported, citing the State Election Commission on Thursday.

The counting of votes will be held on February 9, instead of February 7 as announced earlier, the poll body said. The polls have been deferred in view of the three-day mourning declared in the state after the passing away of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Aircraft maker Bombardier has said it will support the authorities investigating the crash of its Learjet 45 plane at Baramati that killed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

In an emailed statement to PTI on Thursday, a Bombardier spokesperson said it cannot comment on the potential cause of the accident until the investigation is complete.

“We, at Bombardier, are deeply saddened by this tragic event and extend our sincerest sympathies to all those affected,” it said.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: NCP-SCP MP Fauzia Khan on Thursday expressed profound grief over the demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, remembering him as family and lauding him as a skilled organiser and administrator.

Speaking to ANI, Fauzia Khan said, "The pain and shock we are in cannot be expressed in words. He was the elder brother of Maharashtra and always worked with everyone collectively," she said.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: After Maharashtra bid farewell to Ajit Pawar, grief-stricken residents of Baramati began wondering what the future holds for them. Teacher Ganesh Londhe said the town’s development model took shape due to Pawar’s vision and foresight.

“I do not remember people ever having to approach Dada seeking development or new projects for Baramati. He was always eager to bring innovative and novel initiatives. Everyone is worried about what will happen to Baramati,” PTI quoted Londhe as saying.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: A day after Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar's death in a plane crash, leaders of his party NCP on Thursday pushed for a state cabinet berth for his wife Sunetra, while Opposition NCP (SP) signalled it wasn't averse to taking forward efforts for the merger of rival groups, PTI reported.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders also suggested that Sunetra Pawar should step forward and lead the outfit. Senior NCP leader and FDA Minister Narhari Zirwal said it is the people's wish that late Ajit Pawar's wife, Sunetra be inducted into the state ministry.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Civil Aviation Minister Rammohan Naidu Kinjarapu informed Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday that the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has initiated a formal investigation into the plane crash that killed Ajit Pawar.

Replying to a letter written by CM Fadnavis, the Union Minister said the aircraft's black box has been recovered, and the investigation has commenced in accordance with the Aircraft Accident and Incident Rules.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Nazeem Kazi, who has been serving as an ambulance driver with the municipal council, told PTI that Pawar had intervened around six months ago after learning that the local body was operating with a decades-old ambulance.

“There was a news report that the Baramati Municipal Council had a very old ambulance. After learning about it, Ajit Pawar immediately convened a meeting and ensured that a new ambulance was provided without any delay,” Kazi said.

“Unfortunately, I had to drive Ajit Pawar’s body from the hospital in the same ambulance he helped us get,” he added.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Amid quiet tears and folded hands, the mortal remains of Captain Sumit Kapoor were consigned to flames at the Punjabi Bagh crematorium. With the body not taken to the Kapoor residence, family and friends gathered at the crematorium ground to pay their last respects.

Several mourners recalled Kapoor, who was in his 50s, as a warm-hearted neighbour and a committed professional whose sudden death has left the locality in shock.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday paid his last respects to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, describing his untimely demise as a profound loss for the state's politics, one that will be difficult to fill for a long time.

In a post shared on X, Shah said, "I paid my last respects to Ajit Pawar ji and offered heartfelt tributes to him. The untimely demise of Ajit Pawar ji, who was dedicated to society and the people, has created such a void in Maharashtra's politics that it will not be possible to fill it for a long time."

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Union Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Thursday sought the Maharashtra government's cooperation for expeditious conduct of probe into the plane crash which killed Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others.

In a letter to CM Devendra Fadnavis, a day after the tragedy, he sought the government's support for accessing the crash site, local administrative assistance and coordination with ground agencies, among other steps.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya on Thursday responded to Mamta Banerjee's demand for a probe into Ajit Pawar's death.

“Mamata Banerjee says whatever she likes; nobody takes her seriously,” PTI quoted Bhattacharya as saying. Banerjee earlier demanded an investigation monitored by the Supreme Court into Maharashtra deputy CM and NCP leader Ajit Pawar's death in a plane crash.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Ajit Pawar was cremated on Thursday with full state honours at the Vidya Pratishthan college ground in Baramati, the Pawar family's hometown, located 100 km from Pune. The college was founded by the Pawar family.

Thousands of mourners gathered for Ajit Pawar's last rites, chanted "Ajit Dada amar rahe", when his mortal remains, draped in the national flag, were brought from his village, Katewadi, to the Vidya Pratishthan ground.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Senior NCP leader and Maharashtra FDA minister Narhari Zirwal on Thursday said that the public wants late Deputy CM Ajit Pawar's wife, Sunetra Pawar, to be brought into the state ministry, PTI reported.

Sunetra Pawar is currently a Rajya Sabha member. Asked about the NCP's future after Ajit Pawar's death, Zirwal said that people want "vahini" (sister-in-law, referring to Sunetra Pawar) to be included in the ministry.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: The Uttar Pradesh Council of Ministers on Thursday passed a condolence resolution expressing deep grief over the sudden demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

The resolution was adopted at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The ministers described the deaths of Pawar and four others in a plane crash in Baramati, Maharashtra, on Wednesday as “extremely tragic”.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: The last rites of flight attendant Pinky Mali, who died in a plane crash along with Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, were performed on Thursday at central Mumbai’s Shivaji Park crematorium, officials said.

Pinky Mali’s family broke down in grief as they gathered around her funeral pyre, PTI reported. Earlier, her mortal remains were brought in an ambulance from Baramati.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: Visuals from Vidya Pratishthan ground in Baramati, where thousands gathered to watch the last rites of Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar.

Ajit Pawar funeral updates: On the demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, BJP MP Anurag Thakur on Thursday said that it has created “a huge vacuum in Maharashtra's politics.”

“When I heard this news yesterday, I couldn't believe it. We all stand with his family... I will only say that the plane crash should be investigated. The reasons should be found out. Maharashtra has lost a big leader, and we have lost a friend,” ANI quoted Anurag Thakur as saying.