Leader of NCP (Ajit Pawar) raises questions over air crash

Leaders of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP Amol Mitkari (MLA) and Advocate Rupali Thombre Patil raised questions over the tragic air crash that claimed the life of the party’s chief and deputy chief minister, here on Monday.

Casting doubts over the death of the deceased deputy chief minister, Mitkari wrote on social media, “A firestorm of questions is brewing. I will not commit the sin of politicising the death. But there are several doubts and questions in my mind, he said.

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While six people died in the accident, how then only five bodies were recovered from the crash site,” he asked.

“The passenger list is recorded digitally before takeoff. Why this discrepancy? How come not a single piece of paper in the flight got burnt? Why were the pilots changed so many times,” he further questioned.

Mitkari demanded a high-level impartial probe into the air crash under the supervision of a retired judge. “I will personally meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi to demand that a high-level impartial inquiry should be conducted under the chairmanship of a retired judge. I will take this decision after talking to our party leaders, group leaders and Sunetra Pawar,” he said.

Later on Monday, Rajya Sabha MP and chief spokesperson of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Sanjay Raut also raised questions over the air crash. “Ajit Pawar’s plans to merge his NCP with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP was going to be a big blow to the BJP. Such a move would have changed the politics of the country completely. Ajit Pawar had repeatedly stated that he had a file on the BJP’s scams and would reveal it at the right time. Ajit Pawar had made this statement on January 15,” he pointed out.

He further said, “It is a mystery that he died in an accident exactly 10 days later. This reminds me of Justice Brijgopal Loya who died under mysterious circumstances,” Raut told media persons at a press conference.

After the press conference, Raut also attacked the BJP in his speech in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, saying, “On January 15, Ajit Pawar accused the BJP of corruption and within 10 days, his plane crashed. On January 15, Ajit Pawar made a statement, alleging that the BJP had consumed a large amount of money in the irrigation scam. Ajit Pawar had also said that he has the file of this BJP scam. Ajit Pawar dying in a plane crash within 10 days of making that statement is mysterious.”

“Ajit Dada was accused of a Rs 70,000-crore irrigation scam. He joined hands with you (the BJP). But later Ajit Pawar accused the BJP of making money in the irrigation scam. He always kept the file of documents that proves his allegations against the BJP with him. Even when he went to Baramati, that file was with him. But, Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash in Baramati. There should be a judicial inquiry into this matter. Ajit Pawar’s accident reminded me of Justice Loya,” Sanjay Raut said in the upper house.

Reacting to Sanjay Raut’s statement about the Justice Loya case, BJP MP Advocate Ujjwal Nikam said that “Justice Loya’s death was explained as a heart attack”. BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban also said that “Nothing happened in the Justice Loya case. In the Ajit Dada air crash case, the truth will come out”.

Reacting to Sanjay Raut’s statement, Maharashtra Water Resources Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said, “Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis himself has given instructions to investigate the accident. Sanjay Raut has lost his mental balance and that is why he is making such absurd statements”.