Shinde Sena's Ramdas Kadam seeks probe into Sunil Tatkare's role in Ajit Pawar's air crash

Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam asked on Monday for an inquiry into whether Nationalist Congress Party state president Sunil Tatkare had any role in the January air crash that killed Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Speaking in Mumbai on November 9, the former minister offered no evidence. Tatkare rejected the charge as baseless and said he would answer at a press conference.

What Kadam said

Kadam said the continuing probe into the crash should look at one more angle. “Investigate whether Tatkare had a hand in the conspiracy behind Ajit Dada’s death,” he said, and added that he had heard Tatkare wanted to become Deputy Chief Minister himself.

He went on to attack Tatkare’s character. “He finishes those who grow close to him,” Kadam said, and described his ambitions as something that could drive him to “do anything”. He recalled that Tatkare had once been personal assistant to A R Antulay, the former chief minister, and claimed he had finished Antulay’s career too.

Much of the speech was a local grievance. Kadam alleged that Tatkare worked against his son, Shiv Sena minister Yogesh Kadam, in Dapoli, and quietly helped Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Bhaskar Jadhav in Guhagar, a seat Kadam’s side lost. Both men come from the Raigad and Ratnagiri belt of the Konkan, where the two parties have competed for years.

What is on record about the crash

The Learjet 45, registered VT-SSK, came down while landing at Baramati on January 28, 2026, killing Ajit Pawar and four others. Pune Rural Police first registered an accidental death report, and on January 30 the case was handed to the Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, the national air crash investigator, took up the technical inquiry.

The Civil Aviation Ministry said on February 19 that the cockpit voice recorder had thermal damage, that the maker’s country was being asked for help, and that the flight data recorder had been downloaded at the bureau’s New Delhi facility.

The bureau’s preliminary report, released on February 28, stated no cause. It said all aspects of the accident would be examined to establish the root cause and contributing factors. It recorded that the crew was told visibility was 3,000 metres, well below the 5,000 metre minimum for visual flight, and that the tower was staffed by a ground instructor, not a trained air traffic controller. Baramati is an uncontrolled airfield with no navigation aids beyond wind socks and no meteorological facility of its own.

The bureau’s interim advice was that the aviation regulator make operators of visual flights to uncontrolled airfields follow standard procedures strictly, and that aerodrome operators allow flying only when weather meets the prescribed criteria. The sources reviewed give no date for the final report.

How the row built

1. January 28, 2026Learjet crashes at Baramati; Ajit Pawar and four others die
2. January 30, 2026Maharashtra CID takes over the accident case
3. February 28, 2026AAIB preliminary report gives no cause
4. November 3, 2026NCP meeting at Devgiri shows a split over the finance portfolio
5. November 9, 2026Kadam seeks a probe into Tatkare's role

Tatkare and the NCP respond

Tatkare, who leads the NCP in the state, rejected every allegation as baseless and said he would put his side before the media at a press conference. At the time of writing that had not been reported.

NCP national spokesperson Umesh Patil said the charges were improper without proof. He asked Kadam to produce evidence if he has any and to make responsible statements. Patil said Kadam had levelled such allegations at Tatkare before and described the quarrel as a local fight in the Konkan, where Tatkare has spent nearly four decades building the NCP against the Shiv Sena.

Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar took the other view. Because the accusations are so serious, he said, an inquiry should be started. Ajay Birwatkar, a Raigad Zilla Parishad member and Tatkare’s brother-in-law, replied on social media that attacks on their self-respect would draw a strong response. The Shinde Sena as a party has not issued a separate statement.

Why it matters

The NCP and the Shiv Sena are both partners in the Fadnavis-led Mahayuti government, and the exchange comes six days after the NCP’s own Devgiri meeting, where leaders called the BJP’s condition on the finance portfolio a betrayal and Parth Pawar walked out when Tatkare spoke. Sunetra Pawar, Ajit Pawar’s widow, became Deputy Chief Minister after his death. Both rows touch the same question of who speaks for the NCP in the alliance.

For the investigation itself, nothing in the public record so far points to anyone other than the findings on visibility, staffing and airfield facilities. A demand by a political rival does not change what the bureau or the CID has said.

What happens next

Tatkare’s promised press conference is the next event. Whether the Shinde Sena leadership backs Kadam or distances itself, and whether anyone files a formal complaint with the CID, will show how far the charge goes. The bureau’s final report, which will settle the cause, has no announced date.