File photo of NCP Rajya Sabha member Sunetra Pawar.
| Photo Credit: ANI
Rajya Sabha member Sunetra Pawar reached Mumbai on Saturday (January 31, 2026) to be sworn in as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister in place of her deceased spouse and NCP chief Ajit Pawar.
Ms. Sunetra reached the official residence ‘Devgiri’ of her late husband in south Mumbai, in the wee hours, along with her son Parth.
On Saturday (January 31), NCP’s legislature wing will hold a meeting around 2 p.m., after which she will be named as its leader and set to take the position of Deputy CM, becoming the first woman to hold the position in Maharashtra.
The 40 legislators of NCP will meet at Vidhan Bhavan on Saturday (January 31), following a low-key ceremony at Lok Bhavan at 5 p.m.
Ms. Sunetra (62) is not a member of either house of the Maharashtra legislature but holds a Rajya Sabha seat. It is speculated that her son will replace her in the Rajya Sabha. All the movement comes after Ajit Pawar’s death in a fatal plane crash on Wednesday in Pune district’s Baramati. NCP-SP supremo Sharad Pawar stated that he has no idea about Ms. Sunetra’s appointment or the oath ceremony, saying, “It is the decision of her party. I have no clarity on the reasons behind the hasty appointment.”.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, The NCP will take whatever decision it has to take for the post of deputy chief minister, and we will support the decision. We are standing behind the family of Ajit Dada and the NCP.”
Ms. Sunetra became a popular name in politics after she contested the Lok Sabha 2024 elections in Baramati as the candidate of the NCP against her sister-in-law and incumbent NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule. However, she was defeated and later elected to the Rajya Sabha.
Published – January 31, 2026 08:46 am IST
