Following Ajit Pawar’s death, the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are expected to reunite, with a formal announcement likely in February after the district councils elections.
According to sources, merger discussions had reached an advanced stage, with leaders from both sides quietly laying the groundwork for a formal reunification after the zilla parishad election results. Ajit Pawar’s untimely demise has introduced uncertainty over the immediate timeline, but party leaders maintain that the broader political process remains very much alive.
Senior NCP leaders who travelled to Baramati to pay their last respects to Ajit Pawar also held informal consultations, during which the need to continue dialogue amid the changing political situation was emphasised.
Ajit Pawar had been the central link between the two factions. As Deputy Chief Minister, he played a key role in reopening communication channels with the Sharad Pawar camp and personally led negotiations aimed at healing the split.
Senior NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil confirmed that merger talks were well advanced, As per reports , a discussions had even moved to informal deliberations on possible Cabinet reshuffles and the induction of new faces as part of a reunified setup.
Calling Ajit Pawar’s passing “a major loss for everyone,” Patil recalled a series of meetings held in mid-January. “We have been meeting frequently in recent times. On January 16, we met at my residence to finalise plans to contest elections together. A meeting was also held at Sharad Pawar ji’s residence the following day,” he said.
Sources added that contesting the zilla parishad elections together was intended as a confidence-building exercise, with the merger announcement planned after the results.
Ajit Pawar had also publicly hinted at a reunion on multiple occasions, brushing aside criticism and questioning the unease among detractors. “Why should it bother anyone if we come together?” he had remarked at a public rally.
At present, the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar is part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance, while the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) remains with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, alongside the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Congress.
Ajit Pawar and four others were killed on Wednesday after their aircraft crashed near the runway at Baramati airport in Pune district during a second landing attempt in poor visibility. The plane caught fire on impact, killing the two pilots, Pawar’s personal security officer, and a flight attendant.
