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Born in 1963 in Osmanabad (now Dharashiv), Sunetra Pawar comes from a Maratha family with deep political roots. Here's all you need to know about the new Maharashtra Deputy CM, who takes on late Ajit Pawar's role
Ajit Pawar's untimely demise left a significant void in Maharashtra's political landscape. The late Deputy Chief Minister's wife, Sunetra Pawar, has now stepped into Pawar's shoes – making her the first woman Deputy CM of Maharashtra.
Hours before the swearing-in ceremony, Sunetra Pawar was elected the NCP legislature party leader at a meeting at Vidhan Sabha in Mumbai on Saturday, 31 January.
Born into an agriculturist family, who grew up in an environment closely connected to public life – Sunetra Pawar is a passionate environmentalist, and has devoted her time into various areas spanning education and social upbringing of students, women empowerment, more, as per her website.
1. Born into a family with deep political roots
Born in 1963 in Osmanabad (now Dharashiv), Sunetra Pawar comes from a Maratha family with deep political roots. She grew up in an environment closely connected to public life—her father, Bajirao Patil, was a prominent local politician, while her brother, Padamsinh Bajirao Patil, emerged as a powerful political figure in the district during the 1980s.
She completed her Bachelor’s degree in commerce from the S B Arts and Commerce College in Aurangabad in 1983.
In December 1985, Sunetra pawar got married to Ajit Pawar.
2. Chairperson of textile park, EFOI founder
– A passionate environmentalist, Sunetra Pawar founded the Environmental Forum of India (EFOI) in 2010. It's a non-governmental organisation dedicated to raising environmental awareness and fostering eco-conscious communities, as per information on her website.
– Since 2006, Sunetra Pawar has served as chairperson of Baramati Hi-tech Textile Park Ltd, a multimodal garment manufacturer’s park under the central government’s Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks.
– She also devotes her time to regularly overseeing activities and pioneering efforts towards spreading education and social upbringing of more than 25000 students, at Vidya Pratisthan. It was founded by late Ajit Pawar.
– Sunetra Pawar also led a self-help group movement on the Nirmal Gram (Clean Village) Campaign in 86 villages across Maharashtra.
3. Sunetra Pawar's political career
Sunetra Pawar made her electoral debut in the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections when NCP, backed by the BJP-led NDA and part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance – fielded her from the high-profile Baramati constituency.
She was pitted against NCP(SP) leader Supriya Sule in what became one of the most closely watched contests of the polls.
Sule defeated Sunetra by 1.5 lakh votes. She won the Baramati seat for the fourth successive time with a vote share of 51.85%. However, Sunetra was later elected to the Rajya Sabha.
4. Sunetra Pawar's net worth
Sunetra Pawar disclosed her total income in the Income Tax Return filed for the financial year 2022-23 as ₹4,22,21,010, as per the affidavit she filed ahead of the Lok Sabha Election 2024.
Some of the share and bonds owned by Sunetra Pawar include Baramati Agro Ltd Equity Shares, Venkeys (India) Limited (Former Name Western Hatcheries Ltd), Baramati Agro Ltd
5. NCP factions were set to announce formal merger
Sunetra Pawar was unanimously elected as the leader of the NCP legislature party in Maharashtra on Saturday, three days after the death of her husband and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The former Dy CM passed away in a plane crash near Baramati.
Sunetra Pawar's stepping into her husband's shoes also comes at a time when there were talks of a reunification of the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). A formal announcement was reportedly set to be announced on 8 February.
However, earlier in the day, Sharad Pawar said he had no information about Sunetra Pawar taking oath as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, and got to know about the development from media reports.
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