Mumbai: Sunetra Pawar, wife of late Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar, has accepted the party’s offer to assume the role of Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, according to reports. Her swearing-in would mark a historic moment as she becomes the first woman to hold the position of Deputy Chief Minister in the state.
The NCP has convened a meeting of its legislative party scheduled for Saturday at 11 am, reports indicate. This will be followed by another meeting of NCP MLAs at Vidhan Bhavan at 2 pm, where the party’s legislative leader will be formally elected. Sunetra Pawar is expected to be chosen unanimously during this session, clearing the path for her entry into the state cabinet.
After being elected as the legislative party leader, Sunetra Pawar is likely to take her oath as Deputy Chief Minister later in the evening. Preparations for the swearing-in ceremony are currently underway, sources said.
Earlier on Saturday, senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to discuss the planned oath-taking ceremony and related formalities. Speaking to the media, Bhujbal stated that the Chief Minister had no objection to holding the ceremony, though certain customary considerations following a death were being kept in mind. He mentioned that senior leaders Sunil Tatkare and Praful Patel were offering their inputs, and a final decision was expected within a few hours.
Ajit Pawar, who was serving as Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister, died in a plane crash in Baramati on Wednesday, along with four others, according to reports. Following his death, questions regarding the future leadership of the NCP and its position in the state government had emerged.