Ajit Pawar plane crash: Flight attendant from UP dies

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January 29, 2026 10:29 IST

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Pinki Mali, a flight attendant from Bhainsa village in Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh, was among those killed on Wednesday in a plane crash that also claimed the life of Nationalist Congress Party leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and three others, officials and family sources said.

IMAGE: A view of the site of charter plane crash which resulted in the death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, in Baramati on Wednesday. Photograph: ANI Video Grab

Key Points

  • Flight attendant from Jaunpur Pinki Mali also died in the crash that killed NCP leader Ajit Pawar.
  • Daughter of an NCP leader, Pinki was married only a year ago.
  • The news of her death has brought deep mourning to her village. 

Pinki had been living with her family in Mumbai and was on board the chartered aircraft that crashed, they added.

The news of her death brought deep mourning to her native village, with residents gathering to console her grieving family.

 

Daughter of an NCP leader 

According to villagers, Pinki's father Shivkumar Mali, an NCP leader, had moved to Mumbai several years ago with his family.

Pinki completed her education in Thane and was married about a year ago in Gorakhpur.

Bhainsa village head Raju Pal mentioned that Pinki maintained strong ties with Bhainsa village, visiting every year during Durga Puja. She actively participated in the festivities and helped arrange the festival pandal.

Despite the family's current residence in Mumbai, their ancestral connection to Bhainsa village remained strong, with frequent visits, as locals noted.

As news of the crash spread, a pall of gloom enveloped Bhainsa village and the surrounding area. Family members were inconsolable, while villagers remembered Pinki as a hardworking, warm, and promising young woman.

Ajit Pawar, Pinki and three others -- Captain Sumit Kapoor, who had 15,000 hours of flying experience; co-pilot Captain Shambhavi Pathak, with 1,500 hours of flying; and Personal Security Officer Vidip Jadhav -- were killed in the plane crash in Pune.