The Economic Crimes Branch and Enforcement Directorate alleged that several sugar factories were deliberately shown to be financially unviable and then declared non-performing assets before being sold at low prices to companies allegedly linked to relatives of bank officials, including Pawar.

One of the key transactions under scrutiny was the sale of Jarandeshwar Sugar Sahakari Karkhana in Satara. Investigators alleged that the funds used to purchase the factory came from two companies, Jarandeshwar Sugar Mills Pvt Ltd and Jay Agrotech. Pawar’s wife Sunetra was a director of Jay Agrotech until 2008, while his uncle Rajendra Ghadge was a director of Jarandeshwar Sugar Mills.

The case has undergone multiple reversals since 2020. During the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, the EOW submitted a closure report stating that no criminal offense had been committed. After the change of government in 2022, the EOW attempted to reopen the investigation. In January 2024, months after Pawar joined the ruling alliance, the agency again stated that no crime had been committed and that the bank had recovered more than Rs 1,343 crore of loans.

However, protest petitions challenging the closure report are pending before the court, which is yet to decide whether to accept the closure report or order further investigation.

In the related Enforcement Directorate case, Pawar has not been charged. His nephew, NCP SP leader Rohit Pawar, was charged in July 2025.

irrigation scam

Ajit Pawar was also investigated for the alleged irrigation scam, estimated to be around Rs 70,000 crore. The case related to alleged irregularities, cost increases and procedural violations in the approval and execution of irrigation projects when Pawar was Water Resources Minister during the NCP Congress government.

He was named as a defendant in the case. However, in December 2019, the Nagpur and Amravati units of the Anti-Corruption Bureau filed affidavits before the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court stating that no irregularities were found in projects under its jurisdiction, effectively giving it a clean chit in those cases.

Pawar had denied all allegations of corruption in both cases.

Parth Pawar and the Mahar Watan land issue

Pawar ended up blowing the cloud over the allegations his son Parth Pawar faced in 2025 related to the transfer of land classified as Mahar watan land. Such lands are protected by law and cannot be transferred or sold. Opposition parties alleged that parcels of these lands had been transferred in a manner that benefited people linked to the Pawar family and demanded an investigation.

Ajit Pawar denied any wrongdoing on the part of his son and said the transfer had taken place due to a clerical or clerical error. He maintained that neither he nor Parth Pawar had sought any special benefit and said the matter was being rectified through official procedures.

He said the land had been returned to its original owners and Revenue officials had been ordered to rectify the records. Pawar also said that the issue should not be politicized and any error, if found, should be corrected as per law.

So far, no case has been filed against Parth Pawar in connection with the Mahar Watan land issue. The issue remains at the level of administrative control.