We are from same family now, Sunetra tells widow of Ajit Pawar’s security officer

Kolhapur: Newly appointed deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar, after spending Sunday at her home in Baramati, visited Karad and later Taradgaon in Phaltan tehsil on Monday, meeting the family members of Vidip Jadhav, Ajit Pawar's personal security officer, who too died with the former deputy CM in the Jan 28 Baramati plane crash.The new deputy CM visited Taradgaon, Vidip Jadhav's ancestral village, where he was cremated with full state honours. She went to Jadhav's home and offered flowers to his photo. She then sat on the floor with his family members, including his parents, daughter, son and widow, Sandhya Jadhav. Sunetra Pawar told Sandhya Jadhav that she would always stand with the family. "I am here for the family. Now, we are relatives... we are from the same family," Sunetra Pawar told Sandhya.Sandhya, who is a contract worker in a private company, said, "She (Sunetra Pawar) will stay beside me my whole life, just like my husband was always with Ajitdada. She told me that now we are like family. We share the same pain. For me, my husband was everything, and I have lost him. It is the same for her as well. I will never forget that she put her hands on my head. I will never forget her kindness; it will stay with me for my entire life."Dilip Jadhav, the deceased personal security officer's father, told the deputy chief minister that the family would meet her after the end of the mourning days. "For us, it is a big shock. I have lost my only son. We had lots of expectations from him, but he left us. He had called me on Jan 26 and told me that soon Ajitdada's tour for Satara would be declared, and he would come home and take me to Pune for further treatment for my knees. I told Sunetra Pawar that we do not want anything, except for the well-being of my daughter-in-law and grandchildren."Ajit Pawar and Vidip Jadhav were among the five people who died in the crash. Jadhav had been with Ajit Pawar since 2019.Earlier in the day, at Karad, Sunetra Pawar visited the memorial of Yashwantrao Chavan, the first chief minister of Maharashtra and the ideological inspiration of Ajit Pawar and the party in general. At the memorial, she stood in silence with her eyes closed for over one minute, offered a floral wreath, and did a parikrama before leaving the Preeti Sangam, located on the confluence of the Koyna and Krishna rivers, without speaking to anyone.By her side were NCP functionaries such as Sunil Tatkare, Satara minister Makarand Patil, and also NCP (SP) politicians, including former MP Srinivas Patil and former minister Balasaheb Patil. Speaking to TOI, Balasaheb Patil said that since he is the managing trustee of the Venutai Chavan Memorial Trust, he looks after the memorial, and as part of courtesy, whenever non-political events take place, he shows up at the memorial. Later, Sunetra Pawar visited the residence of Yashwantrao Chavan, which was converted into a museum.