DGCA confirms Ajit Pawar was on board Learjet 45 that crashed in Baramati, with 4 others. No survivors

Five people, including the NCP leader, were on board the Learjet 45 (VT-SSK) aircraft that crash landed at Baramati airport Wednesday morning.

People at the site where the plane carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar crashed at Baramati on Wednesday | ANI Video Grab

New Delhi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed that Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was killed in an air crash early Wednesday.

Two members of the crew, as well as two other personnel, including a Personal Security Officer (PSO), were killed in the crash involving his private jet in Baramati.

“A Learjet 45 (VT-SSK) aircraft, operated by VSR, crash landed at Baramati airport early today. There were five people on board, including Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Shri Ajit Pawar, two personnel (1 PSO and 1 attendant) and 2 crew (PIC+FO) members,” a DGCA official told ThePrint. “According to initial information, no person on board survived the crash.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid his tributes to the Maharashtra deputy chief minister, saying that Pawar’s understanding of administrative matters and passion for empowering the poor and downtrodden were also noteworthy.

Shri Ajit Pawar Ji was a leader of the people, having a strong grassroots level connect. He was widely respected as a hardworking personality at the forefront of serving the people of Maharashtra. His understanding of administrative matters and passion for empowering the poor and… pic.twitter.com/mdgwwGzw4R

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 28, 2026

Union Home Minister Amit Shah expressed condolences to the Pawar family. The tragic accident has left my heart deeply distressed, he posted on ‘X’.

The Baramati accident marks a major tragedy less than a year after a London-bound Air India flight crashed in June 2025 just moments after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport last year.

On Wednesday, Pawar became the latest entrant in the list of several high-ranking politicians who have lost their lives in aircraft crashes. Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani had died in the Ahmedabad Air India crash.

Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Dorjee Khandu as well as Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S R Reddy had died in helicopter crashes in 2011 and 2009, respectively.

(Edited by Tony Rai)