Rahul Gandhi demands fair probe into Ajit Pawar's air crash death
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New Delhi: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday, demanded a "fair, transparent, and impartial investigation" into the tragic death of former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash on January 28 in Baramati.
Rahul Gandhi echoed the Pawar family's demand for a thorough investigation into the incident, which is being suspected by his kin as an "attempt" on the late Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader's life.
In a message on social media platform X, LoP Rahul Gandhi said, "NCP-SP leader Rohit Pawar met me today and submitted a letter raising serious concerns about the investigation into the Baramati aircraft crash that claimed the life of Ajit Pawar ji and others."
"Basic principles of law appear not to have been followed, and no FIR has been registered despite the seriousness of the matter. This incident warrants a fair, transparent, and impartial investigation," he added.
The demand stems from an incident in which a private aircraft carrying the veteran NCP leader crashed under mysterious circumstances, IANS reported.
Due to the high-profile stature of the victim, the Maharashtra government immediately handed the case over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), while the Central government ordered a parallel CBI inquiry to rule out any foul play or mechanical sabotage.
However, a delay in the final report has led to speculation in political circles.
An NCP delegation comprising a Minister and MLAs, on Tuesday, submitted a memorandum to the Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis demanding an expedited investigation.
Earlier, Rohit Pawar called for a deeper investigation to find out whether the incident was a genuine accident.
According to NCP-SP leader Rohit Pawar, visibility on the day of the accident was extremely poor, measuring only 3,000 metres.
He claimed that the aircraft's pilot, Captain Sumit Kapoor, had contacted the owner of VSR Ventures V.K. Singh, whose aircraft carrying Ajit Pawar crashed in Baramati, to report that the plane's take-off was impossible due to weather conditions.
"Captain Kapoor explicitly told V.K. Singh that visibility was poor and that the plane could not take off. However, Singh allegedly ordered him to proceed, saying, 'You take off, I will handle the rest later'," Rohit Pawar claimed at a press conference.