Opinion In Baramati, a long goodbye — and winds of change
From the upstart that Ajit Pawar had been labelled as not so long ago, he had finally become the mentor he always aspired to be
Thousands gathered at Vidya Pratishthan in Baramati to pay their respects. (Express Photo by Arul Horizon) The symbol of the Nationalist Congress Party — the clock — is frozen at 10.10 am. But on January 28, it was at 8.44 am that time stood still for Baramati.
The stillness was palpable in the town known as the home turf of the Pawars, as it absorbed the news that Ajit Pawar was no more. People downed the shutters on their shops, locked homes and started to move towards the airport, the hospital and finally the grounds of the Vidya Pratishthan where his mortal remains would be brought for a final glimpse.
Despite decades as a journalist, I have written about Ajit Pawar only a few times — with the story almost always being far from flattering. This got reinforced when I spent two days in Baramati during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections campaign. Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra faced the incumbent MP, his cousin Supriya Sule. Political analysts predicted a win for Sunetra, given Ajit Pawar’s hold over Baramati and the redoubtable sugar mills of Maharashtra. Yet, speaking to the residents, I found an unmistakable undercurrent of support for Saheb, Sharad Pawar, who was still seen as the real architect of Baramati. For them, Dada, Ajit Pawar, was only carrying forward the work of his mentor. Many also expressed unhappiness at the split that they felt he had manoeuvred in the party and the family. Sule did end up winning, and by a comfortable margin.
The Baramati I visited on January 28 was a vastly changed one. And it was not just because of the tragedy. The grief here did not seem to stem from a short-term feeling of loss. It seemed to have hit home. At the grounds of the Vidya Pratishthan, the women’s support for the man who had instituted the Ladki Bahin scheme was apparent — and touching. Thousands sat silently and patiently on the steps, just outside the periphery of the stage, stony-faced, teary-eyed, deeply moved.
On the stage, VIPs and politicians, usually eager to give bytes to the media, responded to their requests with folded hands. A few who did speak choked up midway and trailed off.
And then there was the sight of the first family of Baramati. As Supriya Sule strode on to the stage, one arm around Sunetra Pawar, the other stretched out to shield her from the crowds, years of family differences seemed to melt away.
The next day as the crowd swelled from thousands to lakhs at the funeral, one needed little proof to deduce that the winds had quietly but certainly changed at Baramati. From the upstart that Ajit Pawar had been labelled as not so long ago, he had finally become the mentor he always aspired to be.
Looking back, the decisive sweep of his party in the municipal council elections in December 2025 had given that indication. While the united NCP was trounced in the corporation elections in January, the coming together was a small win in its own right. Soon after, the two parties announced a joint battle for the Zilla Parishad elections — and this time under the combined symbol of the clock, a contentious issue between the two parties since the split. It seemed time was finally on Ajit Pawar’s side, until it tragically wasn’t.
The writer is resident editor, The Indian Express,Pune
sunanda.mehta@expressindia.com
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