There is an old saying that politics makes strange bedfellows, and no political career in Indian politics matches this adage than that of Ajit Pawar.
A record six times he was the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra-a feat which is unparallel in Maratha politics.
A near constant in Maharashtra politics in last three decades, “Dada” as he was popularly known in Maharashtra hobnobbed with nearly all parties which ruled the state.
Rose to prominence, early in 1991, when his Uncle Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar propelled him to seat of power from Baramarti constituency as MLA.
From that time onwards there was no looking back for Pawar, he quickly made to the spotlight of Maharashtra politics though his deep understanding of sugar cooperatives, irrigation politics and rural power networks.
His individual political graph always kept on rising and his one point agenda to align with the power made him making foes into friends.
Not one, two- eight times Deputy Chief Minister—a record unmatched in the Maharashtra politics —from BJP to Congress than to Shiv Sena and his uncle party NCP all were used by him to remain at the helm of power.
His political ambitions were bereft of any ideology yet his single point agenda to be at the power centre kept him in reckoning all the time.
Over the years, Ajit Pawar served as Deputy Chief Minister under chief ministers cutting across party lines—Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray, and Eknath Shinde.
Few politicians can claim such ideological elasticity. While critics accused him of opportunism, supporters called it pragmatism in a fractured political era.
The most dramatic chapter of his career unfolded in 2019, when Maharashtra woke up to a political coup.
Ajit Pawar broke ranks with the NCP, pledged support to the BJP, and was sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister alongside Devendra Fadnavis in a dawn ceremony.
Though the government collapsed within days, the episode permanently altered Maharashtra politics—and irreversibly damaged his relationship with Sharad Pawar.
Four years later, history repeated itself—but this time with permanence.
In 2023, Ajit Pawar split the NCP, joined the BJP–Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) government, and once again claimed the Deputy Chief Minister’s chair. The move effectively ended Sharad Pawar’s uncontested hold over the party he founded and cemented Ajit Pawar’s status as a political force independent of his uncle’s shadow.
Allegations of corruption questions about amassed wealth continue to dominate the discourse his political career but none could took him away from lust of power.
And remaining politically important, he negated all his challengers.
Many a times Pawar’s political epitaph was written but every time he surprised his detractors through his political shifting.
In many ways, Ajit Pawar embodies a new kind of Indian politician—less bound by ideology, more driven by power arithmetic; less sentimental about legacy, more focused on relevance.
To some, he is a betrayer of political ethics and family bonds. To others, he is a master survivor in an unforgiving political arena.
What remains indisputable is this: Ajit Pawar is not merely a player in Maharashtra politics—he is one of its central pivot.