5 minutes of readingbaramatiJanuary 29, 2026 05:30 am IST
At least an hour before Baramati, the air started to feel heavy.
It was two in the afternoon. The one that usually bursts Pune-The Solapur Highway, lined with shops and restaurants, was desolate. And silent. In Urulikanchan, however, a huge black and white billboard with the photograph of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar spoke volumes about the devastating accident that shocked the nation on Wednesday morning and plunged Baramati, land of the Pawars, into deep sadness.
Turning off the highway towards Baramati and passing almost 35 kilometers of wide, freshly painted roads, rarely seen even in big cities and divided by rows of pink bougainvilleas, you reached what was practically a ghost town.
The toll was open but unmanned. All the establishments were closed, the roads were empty and all the vehicles seemed to be heading in one direction: the grounds of the Vidya Pratishthan school, to pay their last respects to the mortal remains of Ajit Pawar.
At the Baramati spot where the Learjet 45 crashed, killing Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others on Wednesday. (Express photo by Arul Horizon)
The entire city had moved there, hundreds of thousands, to say goodbye to “Ajit dada”, the brother, the leader, the upstart, the rebel, the son of the land.
The sprawling grounds seemed too small. In the centre, JCB machines placed large cement blocks to prepare a funeral platform for Thursday. In front, on the stage, two white awnings awaited a large portrait of the leader, while flowers and garlands began to arrive.
In tears, former Pimpri Chinchwad mayor Mangala Kadam said, “It’s over, it’s over, what’s left? He was my leader, my mentor. I worked with him from 1992 till now. But now, there is nothing left for Maharashtra.”
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Ajit Pawar with his PSO Vidip Jadhav on the flight
Nileema Gujar, secretary of Vidya Pratishthan, recalls her last meeting with Ajit Pawar in December during industrialist Gautam Adani’s visit to inaugurate an Artificial Intelligence laboratory in the university. “He was someone who led from the front,” he said.
Rupali Chakankar, president of the Maharashtra State Women’s Commission, remained rock-silent as the crowd waited for the coffin. Others on stage collapsed, most too distraught to even speak.
Amit Dhalpe, a bank employee, said: “Baramati has been orphaned… We used to go around Maharashtra proudly saying that we were Baramatikars, that’s over now. At first, we thought Dada must have been injured and went to the hospital, where we came to know the truth… we haven’t even eaten since morning.”
With each passing hour, the crowd grew, the barricades were tested and the police resorted to calls over loudspeakers, imploring patience with phrases such as: “Dad would not have liked this indiscipline.” Pawar’s son Parth, with anguish written on his face, oversaw the preparations and accepted condolences from everyone on stage.
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NCP-SCP MP Supriya SuleNCP Rajya Sabha MP Sunetra Pawar and others arrive at the Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Government Medical College, where the mortal remains of Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, who lost his life in the crash landing of a charter plane, are kept in Baramati on Wednesday. (ANI video recording)
As night fell, other members of the Pawar family began to enter. Cousin Supriya Sule led Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra Pawar, who was walking with folded hands, to the stage, now packed with personalities. Outside, a band played a solemn note. The lanterns were turned on. A few kilometers away, a hearse carrying the body of Ajit Pawar left the hospital through the well-lit streets of Baramati, to remain at the university campus until 9:30 p.m. Cries of “Ajit Pawar amar rahein” rang in the air.
It was after 7:30 p.m. when the mortal remains were placed on the stage. NCP workers lined up to pay their respects. Many of them had images of the party symbol, the clock, on their shirts. And yet, time stood still in Baramati.
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