A 35-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a fort in Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg district last year, has collapsed. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has blamed the incident on strong winds.
The statue, situated at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg, had been battered by heavy rainfall and gusty winds in recent days.
Unveiled by Modi on December 4 during Navy Day celebrations at Rajkot Fort in Malvan, the statue fell around 1 pm today, as confirmed by officials.
Police and district administration officials have rushed to the scene to assess the damage and investigate the circumstances surrounding the collapse.
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Reacting to the incident, Shinde commented, “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.”
In the aftermath, Opposition parties have criticized the Maharashtra government, accusing it of substandard work.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Vaibhav Naik, who visited the site, claimed the statue fell due to poor construction. “The state government may try to evade responsibility. People responsible for the construction and erection of the statue must be probed thoroughly,” he said.
Echoing similar concerns, NCP (SP) state president and former minister Jayant Patil stated, “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.”
He added, “This Maharashtra government only issues new tenders, accepts commissions, and awards contracts accordingly.”
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi criticized the government over the incident and questioned the accountability of the contractor responsible for the 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.
(Includes inputs from online sources.)
