Mumbai/Baramati, April 24 After the sudden and tragic demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, a significant power shift has taken place within the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in the state.
In a move to fill the immense leadership void, Sunetra Pawar has taken the oath as the state's first female Deputy Chief Minister and has been appointed the NCP President, centralising all executive powers.
To streamline party operations and ensure organisational stability, Sunetra Pawar has implemented a "triple-layer" distribution of responsibilities within the family.
This move is seen by political analysts as a strategic effort to keep party control within the immediate family and prevent potential internal coups by senior NCP leaders.
Sunetra Pawar will be in charge of the statewide party organisation and final decision making.
She will drive the party's growth strategy.
Her elder son and NCP Rajya Sabha member Parth Pawar will manage the party affairs in Delhi and Mumbai.
Sunetra Pawar's younger son Jay Pawar will have oversight of Baramati, Beed and Pune rural regions.
As Sunetra Pawar travels across the state to consolidate the party's base, the active involvement of Parth Pawar in the national capital and Jay Pawar in the rural heartlands indicate a long-term strategy to sustain the legacy of Ajit Pawar and maintain the party's influence in Maharashtra politics.
Sunetra Pawar and Parth Pawar duo recently endured an unpleasant incident within the NCP organisation after the succession of Sunetra Pawar at the helm of the party.
Her letter to the Election Commission of India (ECI) seeking to nullify all the correspondence between the period of death of her husband Ajit Pawar and she taking over the party, sparked the debates of her distrust on State NCP President Sunil Tatkare and NCP's National Working President Praful Patel.
The upcoming Maharashtra Legislative Council election is seen as an opportunity for the Pawars to reassert their supremacy within the party decision-making and to send a message that loyalty will be rewarded.
Meanwhile, the political landscape in Baramati heated up during the recent by-election.
Jay Pawar hinted at his electoral debut.
"I don't speak to the media often, but there is a strong demand from the people and NCP workers that I should be the party candidate from Baramati in 2029. My expectation is to continue working as a party worker, but I will honour the will of the people," he said.
The "Pawar vs Pawar" rivalry, however, shows no signs of cooling down.
Reacting to Jay Pawar's statement, NCP-SP legislator Rohit Pawar suggested that if Jay Pawar contests in 2029, the opposing side might field Yugendra Pawar, potentially setting the stage for another high-stakes family face-off.
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