The deputy chief minister of India's Maharashtra state Ajit Pawar has died in a plane crash along with four other people.
Pawar, an influential politician in Maharashtra, and two of his staff members had been onboard a plane from Mumbai to Baramati. Two crew members onboard were also killed, BBC reports.
The cause of the crash has not been officially confirmed yet.
Pawar was the nephew of veteran politician Sharad Pawar who founded the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) - was an influential politician in Maharashtra.
His political career spanned decades and he served as the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra several times. A few years ago, he broke away from his uncle's party with several lawmakers and set up his own party which India's Election Commission later officially recognised as the NCP.
As mentioned earlier, the cause of the crash has not been officially confirmed yet - but visuals from the crash site show the wreckage of a plane engulfed in plumes of smoke and flames.
The plane had crash-landed at the airport in Pawar's constituency of Baramati, where it had been headed.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X that he was "saddened" by news of the crash.
"My thoughts are with all those who lost their loved ones in the crash. Praying for strength and courage for the bereaved families in this moment of profound grief," he wrote. In a separate post, he also paid tribute to Pawar.
