By Admin 
Ajit Pawar, popularly known as ‘Dada’ in Maharashtra politics, suddenly saying goodbye to the world after the plane crash has left many questions. The question is why the accident happened. The question is how the accident happened. Whose fault was it? And answers to these questions will be found after investigation. But a big question has penetrated deep within the leaders, party workers and family of that party that who will handle the legacy of their party after Ajit Pawar?
Will Ajit Dada’s wife Sunetra take command of the party or will his son Parth take charge or will Praful Patel, number two after Ajit Pawar in NCP, or will the party and family divided into two factions be united again and its head will be Sharad Pawar. After all, what is the future of NCP, let us try to understand it.
Who is the head of NCP after Ajit Pawar?
You must have heard that saying. The show must go on. This is the formula of politics also. The show must go on. That is why the question has arisen that who will be the head of NCP after Ajit Pawar. Because till the morning of 28 January this question did not exist anywhere. As NCP chief and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar was going to campaign in Baramati. But he could not reach Baramati because the chartered plane carrying him crashed and Ajit Pawar died in it.
The accident was so terrible that the bodies of everyone on board the plane were disintegrated. Thousands of people gathered to pay their last respects in the presence of all the big leaders of Maharashtra politics, family members and supporters. And then the question arose in the minds of the supporters that who will be the head of NCP now?
Now Sunetra Pawar will be the head of NCP?
The first name in this is that of Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra Pawar. Sunetra Pawar, who had a low profile for a long time, contested the Lok Sabha elections from Baramati in the year 2024 against Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule. Even though Sunetra lost that election, that election established her as a leader and she came out of the image in which she was known only as Ajit Pawar’s wife. Currently she is a Rajya Sabha MP. But there are differences within the party regarding whether Sunetra will be able to handle the party under the circumstances of the kind of tussle that is already going on in the NCP and which will increase further after Ajit Pawar’s departure.
Will Parth Pawar handle NCP now?
In such a situation, another name comes to the fore. And that name is Parth Pawar. Parth is the elder son of Ajit Pawar. Younger son Jai Pawar is away from politics and is engaged in his business. Parth has been in active politics since 2019. He also contested the Lok Sabha elections in 2019, but lost. After that defeat, Parth remained active in politics but not enough to fill the void left by Ajit Pawar’s departure in the broken NCP. Because his political experience is less, his age is also less and in the last five years he has not been able to create such a cadre which can stand shoulder to shoulder with him.
Praful Patel will get the command of NCP?
So again a name comes from NCP only. And that name is Praful Patel. Praful Patel is an experienced politician. Has been very close to Sharad Pawar. He has also been a minister at the Centre. He has also been a friend of Ajit Pawar, that is why when the uncle-nephew duo broke and the party also got divided into two parts, Praful Patel left Sharad Pawar and joined Ajit.
Even today, Prafulla Patel is the most powerful and accepted leader of NCP after Ajit Pawar. Be it running the government at the Center or managing the alliance partners or establishing Ajit Pawar strongly in the state politics, Prafulla is an expert in it. And if any member from outside the family takes over the command of NCP, then Prafulla is the most natural contender.
Can Jayant Patil also be a contender?
The remaining contender can also be Jayant Patil, who has been an MLA for the last 30 years. Chhagan Bhujbal can also be a contender. Who is a minister in the Maharashtra government. Sunil Tatkare can also be a contender, who has good experience in administration. He is also the state president and also the only MP of Lok Sabha. Dhananjay Munde, who has been one of Ajit Pawar’s closest associates, can also be a contender. But there is not a single leader among them who has the mass appeal like Ajit Pawar and the will power like Ajit Pawar, through which he has been acceptable inside the party as well as outside the party. In such a situation, the one name that can save both the party and the family together and on which hardly anyone will have any objection, is that of Sharad Pawar.
Will NCP, divided into two factions, unite?
In such difficult circumstances, Sharad Pawar can come forward. But before taking over Ajit Pawar’s NCP, he will have to unite NCP Ajit Pawar and NCP Sharad Pawar. And this work is very difficult, for which hardly anyone is prepared. Because the party that Sharad Pawar has is a part of the opposition Mahavikas Aghadi of the Maharashtra government and the NCP that Ajit Pawar has is a part of the Mahayuti, the coalition that runs the government of Maharashtra.
In such a situation, Sharad Pawar has only two options. Either he himself becomes a part of Mahayuti, then the party will be united or he convinces Ajit Pawar’s people to exit the government, then the party will be united. And both of these situations are looking impossible right now. Because if Sharad Pawar has to be a part of the Grand Alliance, then the central leadership of BJP and Eknath Shinde will also have to be convinced for this. Which doesn’t seem to be possible right now. At the same time, if Ajit Pawar’s party has to be thrown out of the government, then Ajit Pawar’s leaders will have to resign from the cabinet and hardly any minister enjoying the pleasures of power will be able to agree to this.
In such a situation, it does not seem possible for Sharad Pawar to come forward and manage it by uniting both the parties. Yes, it is possible that the family may unite, the gap that was visible between the family members may also be bridged, but it does not seem possible right now that both NCPs will unite, workers of both NCPs will unite. But Sharad Pawar is an experienced player in politics. His friends are his friends, his political enemies are also his friends. Because every child who understands the politics of Maharashtra knows how Sharad Pawar’s personal relations have been with political enemies Praful Patel or Chhagan Bhujbal or Dhananjay Munde or Sunil Tatkare. Therefore, it is a bit early to answer this question.