MUMBAI, Jan. 31 -- Sunetra Pawar will become Maharashtra's first woman deputy chief minister, taking over the position from her late husband, NCP chief Ajit Pawar, who died in a plane crash on Wednesday. Appointed to the Rajya Sabha after she unsuccessfully fought the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Sunetra is expected to be elected leader of the NCP's legislature party on Saturday. She will be sworn in as deputy chief minister immediately thereafter. Party insiders said Sunetra expressed her willingness to step into her deceased husband's shoes on Friday, after Ajit Pawar was cremated with full state honours in Baramati. Senior party leaders Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare, Chhagan Bhujbal and Dhananjay Munde met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and conveyed the party's decision on Friday. The NCP's 40 legislators will meet at Vidhan Bhavan on Saturday, to elect Sunetra as legislature party leader. She will then be sworn in at a low-key function at Lok Bhavan at 5pm. It is not clear whether Sunetra will also handle the finance and excise portfolios held by Ajit Pawar. She is not a member of either house of the state legislature and will contest the by-election to the Baramati assembly seat represented by her late husband. She is expected to resign as Rajya Sabha member. Her elder son Parth is likely to be nominated in her place, said a senior party leader. Party insiders said chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, whose BJP is the senior partner in the Mahayuti coalition government, readily gave his nod to the NCP's decision to appoint Sunetra as deputy chief minister. "Although a mere formality, it was important to secure the approval of the BJP and the chief minister," said a senior NCP leader. Fadnavis told the media later, "We will support the decision taken by the NCP and Ajit Pawar's family. As the government and as a party, we stand by them and the Pawar family." Food and civil supplies minister Chhagan Bhujbal said, "During our meeting with the CM, we enquired about his availability (for the swearing-in) and he said he is available on Saturday. The swearing-in after the election of the CLP could take place tomorrow itself." After the NCP leaders met Fadnavis on Friday, the party's political strategist, Naresh Arora, met Sunetra, and her sons Parth and Jay in Baramati and discussed details of the oath-taking ceremony with them. The NCP office then contacted party legislators, instructing them to attend the legislature party meeting at Vidhan Bhavan. Significantly, Sunetra took the decision on her election as legislature party leader even before a meeting of the Pawar family was held. A senior NCP (SP) leader said Sunetra or other senior leaders of her party did not have any discussions with Sharad Pawar on Friday in connection with her accepting the post of deputy chief minister. "It's possible that she or someone on her behalf had spoken with Pawar senior but there was no meeting as such," he added. Sunetra left for Mumbai with her sons late on Friday. No one from Sharad Pawar's family accompanied her. Meanwhile, a senior NCP minister said a power struggle between leaders of the two NCP factions on the issue of the proposed merger has already begun. "There are a few leaders in our party who are opposing the merger. The Pawar faction is pushing for it, with its leaders like Jayant Patil, Ankush Kakade and Shashaikant Shinde publicly saying that Ajit Pawar had held discussions with them on merging the two factions in February," he said. "Against this backdrop, a swift decision was taken to elect the leader of the NCP's legislature party. It was decided that any discussion about a merger and who could be the party's chief would be taken later," the minister added. Significantly, Vikas Lavande, spokesperson for the NCP (SP), slammed NCP leaders for rushing to fill Ajit Pawar's shoes just two days after his death. Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar's ashes were immersed at the confluence of the Neera and Karha rivers near Baramati by his sons Parth and Jay on Friday....