Ajit Pawar Defies Uncle Sharad Pawar’s Shadow; Wins Big In Baramati

NCP Leader Ajit Pawar and Founder Sharad Pawar (ANI Photo)

Ajit Pawar, a veteran politician and multiple-time Deputy Chief Minister, has long aspired to become Maharashtra's Chief Minister - a goal that still remains unfulfilled. However, after Maharashtra assembly polls results on Saturday, the 65-year-old has successfully broken away from his uncle's influence and has firmly established his own identity in state politics. 

The Ajit Pawar-led NCP defeated the NCP (SP) headed by his uncle, Sharad Pawar, by winning 29 seats. This victory strengthened Ajit Pawar's position in the Mahayuti alliance, as he not only led his party to a significant win but also secured his own seat with a large margin. Marking a sharp turnaround from the party’s Lok Sabha performance, Ajit Pawar’s faction won 41 out of total 59 seats it contested. 

Doubts were raised over his political judgment earlier this year when he fielded his wife, Sunetra Pawar, against his cousin Supriya Sule, daughter of NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar in Baramati during the Lok Sabha elections. After Sunetra’s defeat, Ajit admitted that it was a misstep to pit her against his cousin. 

Despite this setback, Ajit Pawar has managed to hold onto the Baramati assembly constituency, a family stronghold, even as Sharad Pawar campaigned aggressively against him. Ajit defeated his nephew Yugendra Pawar of NCP (SP) from Baramati with a massive margin by 1,00,899 votes. 

Ajit Pawar, the current leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has served as Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister three times since 2019. Before 2014, he also held the position twice in Congress-NCP-led governments. 

Five years ago, on November 23, 2019, Ajit Pawar took an oath as Deputy CM alongside BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis as Chief Minister, in a surprise early morning ceremony. However, the government collapsed just three days later when Ajit Pawar resigned. He later became Deputy CM again in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray. 

In a dramatic shift, Ajit Pawar joined the Eknath Shinde-BJP government last year, taking the Deputy CM post once more and splitting the NCP founded by his uncle, Sharad Pawar. 

Ajit Pawar is the son of Anantrao Pawar, Sharad Pawar's elder brother, who passed away when Ajit was just 18. Following in his uncle's footsteps, Ajit entered politics in 1982, when he was elected to the board of a sugar cooperative.