Nearly a month after Ajit Pawar's death, Sunetra Pawar was on Thursday elected as the national president of the ruling Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
The announcement was made by senior NCP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Praful Patel.
"We have to elect a new National President in place of Ajit Dada Pawar. Therefore, this national executive meeting has been convened today. I propose that Mrs. Sunetra Ajit Dada Pawar be elected as the National President of our Nationalist Congress Party," said Patel.
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Following this, Sunetra Pawar was elected unanimously.
Earlier this month, three days after Ajit Pawar's death, Pawar became the first woman Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra and was allotted excise, sports, minority development and Aukaf departments.
Ajit Pawar, the then deputy chief minister in the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP Mahayuti government, died in an air crash in Baramati on January 28.
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Sunetra Pawar, 62, has resigned her Rajya Sabha membership. She is not a member of either house of the state legislature at present, and may contest the byelection to the Baramati assembly constituency.
"Sunetra Pawar has been unanimously appointed as the National President of the Nationalist Congress Party. I express my heartfelt gratitude and congratulate her. Ajit Dada taught us how to work with a secular ideology and serve the people 24 hours a day. Carrying forward the same principles, we will continue to work among the people with dedication,” said NCP leader Sunil Tatkare.
Meanwhile, Prafull Patel said that Parth Pawar would be nominated to the Rajya Sabha seat, which fell vacant after Sunetra Pawar resigned.
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