Sunetra Pawar Unanimously Elected NCP National President, Parth Pawar Nominated for RS
At 62, Sunetra Pawar becomes the third national president of the NCP after Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar, and the party’s first woman national chief. She had assumed office as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra three days after her husband’s death.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of late Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, was on Thursday unanimously elected National President of the party at a meeting of its national executive held at the NSCI Dome, Worli in Mumbai. Her election comes nearly a month after Ajit Pawar’s death in a plane crash at the Baramati airstrip in Pune district on January 28.
The announcement was made by senior NCP leader Praful Patel, who proposed her name for the post. Addressing party office-bearers, Mr. Patel said that as a founding member of the party and its national working president, he had proposed Sunetra Ajit Pawar’s name amid slogans of “Ekach Vada Ajit Dada”. He then asked delegates from across the country to raise their hands in support, following which she was declared elected unopposed.
At 62, Sunetra Pawar becomes the third national president of the NCP after Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar, and the party’s first woman national chief. She had assumed office as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra three days after her husband’s death.
Her elevation assumes significance amid efforts by the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) to push for a merger of the two NCP factions. The party, founded by Sharad Pawar, split in June 2023 after Ajit Pawar rebelled with the support of a majority of MLAs to join the Eknath Shinde-led government and subsequently took control of the NCP.
After being elected, Sunetra Pawar thanked party leaders and workers, folding her hands in gratitude for the trust reposed in her. Visibly emotional during her address, she said the post was not merely a position but a responsibility towards the hopes and struggles of lakhs of party workers. “Your trust is my greatest strength. I assure you that I will work with full commitment and dedication to strengthen the party’s ideology, its tradition of public service and the organisation,” she said.
Mr. Patel also announced that Parth Ajit Pawar will be the party’s candidate for the biennial Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for March 16. He said the NCP has 40 MLAs, against the 37 votes required for victory, and all of them would unanimously support and ensure Parth Pawar’s election to the Upper House.