A 35-foot statue of Maratha Empire founder Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year at a fort in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district, collapsed on Monday. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde blamed the statue collapse due to strong winds.
The statue had been erected at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg, which has been witnessing heavy rainfall and gusty winds in the past two to three days.
On December 4 last year, PM Modi unveiled the statue on the occasion of Navy Day. He also participated in the celebrations at the Rajkot Fort in Malvan, where the statue collapsed at 1 pm today, the official said.
Senior officials of the police and district administration reached the site to take stock of the situation and the damage was being examined, the official added.
Reacting to the incident, Shinde said, "We have our emotions attached to him (Shivaji Maharaj). We worship him like God. The statue collapsed due to strong winds. It’s unfortunate. Our Minister has gone there and is inspecting the situation."
Following the incident, the Opposition parties hit out at the Maharashtra government, alleging poor quality of work.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Vaibhav Naik visited the site for inspection and alleged that the statue collapsed due to shoddy work.
"The state government may try to evade responsibility. People responsible for the construction and erection of the statue must be probed thoroughly," he said.
Voicing similar sentiments, NCP (SP) state president and former minister Jayant Patil said, "The state government is responsible for the collapse, as it did not take proper care. The government paid little attention to the quality of work. It only focused on conducting an event where Prime Minister Narendra Modi was invited to unveil the statue."
"This Maharashtra government only issues new tenders, accepts commissions and gives contracts accordingly," he added.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi slammed the government over the statue collapse and questioned whether action was taken against the contractor responsible for its construction.
"The statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj erected at Sindhudurg collapsed today. Modi Ji had inaugurated the structure in December last year. Who was the contractor? Is it correct that the work was given to a Thane-based contractor? What action will be taken against the contractor? How much ‘khoke’ (bribe) did the contractor pass on to the ‘khoke sarkar’?" Chaturvedi tweeted.
Responding to the Opposition's allegations, state minister Deepak Kesarkar said the Maharashtra government was committed to erecting a new statue at the same spot and asserted that the issue would be addressed "promptly and effectively".
"I don't have all the details about the incident. However, it's important to note that PWD Minister Ravindra Chavan, also the guardian minister of Sindhudurg district, has said a thorough investigation will be conducted in the matter," he said.
"We are committed to erecting a new statue at the same location. This statue, unveiled by PM Modi, pays tribute to Shivaji Maharaj's visionary efforts in building a sea fort. We will take all necessary steps to address this matter promptly and effectively," he further said.
