‘Ajit Pawar’s death shocking, politicians must be careful while travelling’: DK Shivakumar

BENGALURU: Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Wednesday expressed shock over the death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and called it a “huge loss”, urging politicians to exercise greater caution while travelling, especially abroad.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party chief Ajit Pawar and his co-passengers died when the chartered aircraft they were travelling in crashed near the landing runway of the Baramati airport on Wednesday morning. Visuals from the site showed the plane engulfed in flames, with smoke billowing.

Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Shivakumar said he was disturbed after hearing the news and noted that several leaders had been lost in similar circumstances in the past. “Ajit Pawar’s death is shocking. I was also shocked to hear the news of his death. We as politicians, should be very careful. We should be careful while travelling abroad. We have lost many leaders like this,” he said.

Remembering Ajit Pawar as a progressive leader, the Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister said that Pawar had earned the confidence of many leaders across party lines in Maharashtra. “Ajit Pawar is a leader with very progressive ideas. The Maharashtra Chief Minister had said just the other day that he is cooperating in all works. May his soul rest in peace. May the Lord give his family and supporters the strength to bear the grief,” Shivakumar said.

He also pointed out Pawar’s personal connections with Karnataka, particularly Bengaluru. “His family has also established ties in Bengaluru. He met his relatives on Tuesday,” he added.

Referring to Pawar’s political journey, Shivakumar described him as a senior leader but declined to comment on his past political decisions. “Ajit Pawar is a senior leader. He left the party for a political future and came back. I will not talk about this. He was currently serving as the Maharashtra DCM,” he said.

Shivakumar also responded to questions about the recent spate of plane crashes, claiming technical faults were to blame. He said it would be premature to comment without an official report. “I will talk about this after a detailed report comes. What do I know about the technical fault? Many people, including friends from Mumbai, have informed me about it,” he said.

Meanwhile, responding to the opposition’s insistence on the resignation of Minister RB Thimmapur over an alleged controversy, Shivakumar dismissed the demand as politically motivated and said the issue was being exaggerated. “In my opinion, R B Thimmapur has nothing to do with the controversy. The opposition is exaggerating as much as they want”, he said.

He further stated that he would discuss the matter with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah before taking any position. “I will talk to the Chief Minister about this in detail and then inform him. There is a political conspiracy going on”, Shivakumar added. (ANI)