News18
Last Updated:
A statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, erected by the Navy and inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year, collapses at Rajkot Fort, in Malvan. (Image: PTI)
The MVA is set to hold a protest march today, starting from Hutatma Chowk and ending at the Gateway of India.
The Mumbai Police have increased security in response to the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) planned protest march following the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s statue.
The MVA is set to hold a protest march today, starting from Hutatma Chowk and ending at the Gateway of India. Police and other security personnel have been stationed throughout the city to maintain order.
The 35-foot-tall statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Sindhudurg district collapsed on August 26. The statue, which was unveiled on December 4 last year as part of the Navy Day celebrations, was being showcased in Sindhudurg for the first time.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray criticized the BJP-led Mahayuti government for the statue’s collapse at Rajkot Fort last month, stating that: “Two days ago, people saw how the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj fell and the kinds of statements being made. Raj Bhavan is on the seashore, yet even the Governor’s hat never flew off. They say the statue fell due to strong winds–how is this possible?”
Youth Congress leaders and other party workers were detained by Mumbai police on Friday while protesting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the city, demanding a public apology from him over the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he bow his head and apologise to the people of Maharashtra who were hurt by the collapse of the Shivaji statue at Sindhudurg.
“Those who consider Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as their deity and have been deeply hurt, I bow my head and apologise to them. Our values are different. For us, nothing is bigger than our deity,” PM Modi said, reported news agency ANI.
Chetan Patil, the structural consultant for the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue that collapsed in the Malvan area of Sindhudurg, was arrested in Kolhapur. An FIR was filed under sections 109, 110, 125, 318, and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), according to Sindhudurg Police.
On Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced that the state government is taking swift action to reconstruct the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Two committees have been formed, including one to investigate the collapse of the statue in Malvan.
An official statement from the Indian Navy revealed that a joint technical committee, led by the Indian Navy and including representatives from the Maharashtra Government and technical experts, is being established to investigate the damage to the statue at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg. The investigation will consider the severe weather conditions that may have contributed to the incident.