The collapse of a 28-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at Rajkot Fort has sparked controversy in Maharashtra, with Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis urging political parties not to exploit the incident for political gain.
Addressing the issue on Tuesday, Fadnavis expressed deep regret over the collapse, emphasizing the importance of focusing on rectifying the situation rather than politicizing it.
Fadnavis stated, “The collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is a sad incident. No one should play politics. The sculptor must not have been able to understand the wind flow at Rajkot Fort while erecting the statue. Now we will erect a new statue at the same place with the help of the Navy.”
The Deputy Chief Minister also took a veiled dig at those circulating images of the broken statue on social media, saying, “After this incident, some photos of the statue in a broken state went viral. The real mavala of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will not take such photos.”
Fadnavis further dismissed criticism from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, which has blamed the ruling Mahayuti coalition for the alleged poor quality of work on the statue.
The MVA has even called for the resignation of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the dismissal of Public Works Minister Ravindra Chavan over the incident.
Minister Kesarkar Suggests Larger Shivaji Statue After Navy-Erected Monument Collapses
Adding to the debate, Minister Deepak Kesarkar clarified that the statue had been erected by the Indian Navy, not the state government.
He acknowledged the unfortunate nature of the collapse but suggested that it could lead to something positive.
“The statue that collapsed was 28 feet tall, but locals have expressed a desire for a much larger statue, perhaps 100 feet tall. If such a statue is erected, it would be a source of pride for everyone. I plan to visit Rajkot Fort at Malvan to inspect the site and discuss the possibility of a larger statue with the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Ministers,” Kesarkar said.
Kesarkar also mentioned that while the government is already working on erecting a statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar, the new Shivaji statue would be substantial enough to fit the grandeur of Rajkot Fort.
“Personally, I found the original statue to be on the smaller side, so now we should aim for something much bigger,” he added.
Meanwhile, police and forensic experts conducted an investigation at the site on Tuesday morning.
Forensic teams collected remains of the statue to analyze the cause of the collapse, with a detailed report expected to follow.
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