While the centuries-old fort made by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj still stands strong, his Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue, just 8 months old, collapsed in Sindhudurg on Monday. The 35-foot idol, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2023, was a symbol of historical reverence. As the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue fell, a political outburst ensued, with the opposition accusing the ruling coalition government of corruption and negligence. They believe that the government paid no attention to the quality of the work, leading to the statue’s collapse.

The Sindhudurg area has received heavy rainfall in the last three days, and the government is blaming it for the mishap. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said, "Due to strong winds of around 45 km/h, it fell and got damaged."

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue
Image Source: X.com

The Maharashtra Police has registered an FIR against several individuals involved in the making of the statue, including contractor Jaydeep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil under various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita (BNS).

The statue was inaugurated on Navy Day, and now, the Navy has stood up to investigate the accident. As per the reports, the Navy will also look out for the repair, restoration and reinstatement of the statue. CM Shinde also stated that the statue was built by the Navy.

Outburst at the government

Chhatrapati Yuvraj Sambhajiraje of Kolhapur, the 13th direct descendent of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, has blamed the Eknath Shinde-led MahaYuti and said, "The statue erected in haste to inaugurate by the Prime Minister collapsed! It was then that we wrote a letter to the Prime Minister and demanded to change this statue, which was basically shapeless and not according to sculpture and was erected in haste."

Yuvraj Sambhajiraje showed his disappointment through a post on X, "In this Maharashtra, there is no such unfortunate thing as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's memorial collapsing within a year. In such a situation, with what authority will we talk about Maharaja's forts!" he wrote.

He further pointed out that the hurry to build the statue was due to the elections, instructing the government he added, "Now it is necessary to build a proper memorial of P.S. Maharaj at that place. But in the zeal to build it before the election, we should not make any trouble again. Belatedly, this monument should be reconstructed scientifically."

NCP (Sharad Pawar) state president Jayant Patil held the state government responsible for the incident. He 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."

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leaders, including Sanjay Raut and Aaditya Thackeray, claimed the statue collapsed because the work was hurried due to the Lok Sabha elections.

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