The Maharashtra government on Wednesday announced a three-day state mourning following the death of Deputy chief minister and Nationalist Congress Party
chief Ajit Pawar. The 66-year-old politician died in a plane crash near Baramati earlier in the day. In respect of the tragic event, the Maharashtra state government has announced the mourning period. As the mourning period begins today, many are wondering if this means that schools and offices will also be cancelled. Since the Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has declared a 'state holiday', all private and government schools will stay closed till January 30, 2036. The official notice stated: "Shri. Ajit Ashatai Anantrao Pawar, Honourable Deputy Chief Minister, Government of Maharashtra passed away today, the 28th January, 2026. As a mark of respect to the departed dignitary, state mourning shall be observed throughout Maharashtra for three days. "As per the instructions of the Government of Maharashtra, I am directed to request you to take necessary action accordingly and ensure that the national flag will be flown at half mast throughout the state of Maharashtra from 28.01.2026 to 30.01.2026 (both days inclusive) on all buildings where it is flown regularly. Repeat regularly and there will be no official entertainment during this period. "The Government of Maharashtra hereby declares closing of all offices of the state government throughout the state on account of sad demise of Shri. Ajit Ashatai Anantrao Pawar, Honourable Deputy Chief Minister, Government of Maharashtra on Wednesday, January 28th, 2026." Also Read | Marathi Mandatory in Schools: Maharashtra Education Department Seeks Status Report As per the DGCA, Pawar was with “2 more personnel (1 PSO and 1 attendant) and 2 crew (PIC+FO) members” on board a Learjet 45 aircraft, operated by VSR Aviation, which had the capacity of six, including the pilot. The plane was landing at Baramati airport when it crashed. Ajit Anantrao Pawar was born on July 22, 1959 and was last serving as the 8th Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra alongside Eknath Shinde under Devendra Fadnavis from December 2024 until his death. Interestingly, he was the longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, serving non-consecutively. He served in the position for six terms under various governments, including the cabinets of Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray, and Eknath Shinde.
