2 minutes of readingBombayJanuary 30, 2026 12:05 am IST
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut and party leader Sushma Andhare on Thursday intensified their attack on the ruling establishment, demanding a thorough and transparent probe into the plane crash that killed deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, and insisting that public tributes cannot be an answer to demand accountability.
Questioning the functioning of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC), Raut said investigations into air accidents in the country rarely reach a logical conclusion.
“After the air crashes, many investigations have been announced, but nothing concrete has come out. The reports are not made public. The DGCA must tell exactly what went wrong with Ajit Pawar’s plane so that incidents like this do not happen again,” Raut said.
Raut criticized the BJP for taking out full-page advertisements in newspapers and putting up banners honoring Pawar, and said in a post on social media site X that symbolism could not replace truth.
“Publicity is not the real tribute. The real tribute to Ajit Pawar would be for the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister to withdraw the allegations of Rs 70,000 crore scam leveled against him,” he said.
Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare questioned the explanation doing the rounds that poor visibility at the Baramati airport caused the accident.
“Many people say that the accident occurred due to low visibility. But CCTV footage from a considerable distance clearly shows the plane circling. If there was dense fog, how come the plane is so clearly visible in the footage?” -Andhare asked.
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He said that while it is not always appropriate to speak immediately after such a tragedy, the questions raised by Mamata Banerjee were important and could not be ignored.