Ajit Pawar, who was one of the sitting deputy chief ministers of Maharashtra, was killed when the Learjet 45 he was travelling in crashed in Baramati on Wednesday. The merger discussions, led by Ajit Pawar and NCP (SP) state chief Jayant Patil, had been underway for the past four months

Though she is not currently a member of either House of the Maharashtra legislature, the 62-year-old is expected to be chosen as leader of the NCP’s legislature wing at a party meeting later in the day, paving the way for her swearing-in