Parth Pawar and Jay Pawar: A Look At Ajit Pawar's Sons and Their Different Paths

Parth Pawar and Jay Pawar, sons of senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar, have followed different paths. Parth briefly entered politics in 2019 but stepped back after losing Lok Sabha poll. Jay has stayed away from electoral politics and focuses on business.

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Who are Ajit Pawar’s sons?

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Ajit Pawar died on Wednesday morning after a chartered aircraft carrying him crash-landed in Baramati.

According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), five people on board the Mumbai-Baramati charter plane lost their lives in the accident. The crash took place at around 8.45 am near the runway threshold at Baramati airport.

Ajit Pawar was travelling with two staff members, his personal security officer (PSO) and an attendant, along with two crew members. All five were on board when the aircraft attempted a crash landing. Officials said further details about the cause of the crash are still awaited.

Pawar was on his way to Baramati to attend a public rally linked to the Zilla Parishad elections. A day earlier, on Tuesday, he was in Mumbai, where he attended a meeting of the Maharashtra Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure. The meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and attended by Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule and other senior officials.

Ajit Pawar was known as one of Maharashtra's most powerful political leaders, with a long career as a multiple-term MLA from Baramati and a key figure in state politics. His family has played an important role in the political landscape of the state for decades.

In the aftermath of Ajit Pawar’s death, focus has turned to his family, especially his sons Parth Pawar and Jay Pawar, both of whom have drawn public attention at different times while choosing distinctly different careers.

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Parth Pawar: Brief political entry

Parth Pawar is the elder son of Ajit Pawar. He completed his Bachelor of Commerce degree from HR College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai University, in March 2014.

Parth came into the political spotlight in 2019, when he contested the Lok Sabha election from the Maval constituency. His decision to enter electoral politics attracted wide attention due to the strong Pawar family legacy in Maharashtra. However, he lost the election by a large margin. After this defeat, Parth stepped away from frontline politics.

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Low political profile

Parth Pawar has not held any elected post or formal party role. His public appearances have been limited, and he has not announced any plans to contest elections again. Over the years, his name has appeared occasionally in connection with business entities linked to land deals that were examined by authorities. Importantly, he has not been named as an accused in any major criminal case.

In recent years, Parth has kept a low political profile and stayed largely away from public debate.

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Jay Pawar: Business focus, no electoral role

Jay Pawar is Ajit Pawar’s younger son. Unlike his elder brother, Jay has never contested an election or formally entered politics. He has consistently stayed away from active political life.

Jay is understood to be involved in business interests and divides his time between Mumbai and Baramati. While he is sometimes seen supporting family members during election campaigns or public events, he has avoided regular political engagement.

There has been occasional speculation about Jay Pawar's possible political future, especially given the Pawar family’s strong influence in Baramati. However, no official announcement or clear move in that direction has been made so far.

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Pawar family legacy

Parth and Jay Pawar belong to one of Maharashtra’s most influential political families as Ajit Pawar played a major role in government formation and administration over the years.

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Ajit Pawar: The longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra

Ajit Pawar was the longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, though his tenure was spread across different periods. He held the post six times under various governments. Over the years, he served as Deputy Chief Minister in administrations led by Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde.

Born into the influential Pawar political family, Ajit Pawar began his political journey in 1982 after being elected to the board of a cooperative sugar factory. In 1991, he became chairman of the Pune District Central Cooperative Bank, marking his rise in cooperative and regional politics.

The same year, he was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Baramati parliamentary constituency. He later vacated the seat for his uncle, veteran leader Sharad Pawar. Ajit Pawar went on to become one of Maharashtra’s most dominant Assembly leaders, winning seven elections from the Baramati Assembly constituency. His victories came in a 1991 by-election and later in 1995, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014.

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2019 NCP political shake-up

In November 2019, Ajit Pawar caused a major political shake-up by splitting the Nationalist Congress Party and joining a Bharatiya Janata Party-led government, where he again became Deputy Chief Minister. In February 2024, the Election Commission officially awarded the NCP name and party symbol to the faction led by Ajit Pawar.