Chhatrapati Shivaji Statue Collapse: Congress on Tuesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Maharashtra government after a statue of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj collapsed on Monday. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue collpased in the Fort Rajkot at Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district. 


Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole launched a scathing attack at the Eknath Shinde-led government, saying that the way Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue was vandalised was because of the government's corruption. 


"The way the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was vandalised is because of their corruption; whether this government is of the centre or the state, they know nothing except corruption... They have never lagged behind in insulting the ideas of Shivaji Maharaj, the lord of Maharashtra. Yesterday's incident is a misfortune for Maharashtra, for the people of Maharashtra. And no one will forgive this government, this government should now leave the chair and run away," Nana Patole said.






Congress leader Atul Londhe says, "The way the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj has fallen, it is the fall of Maharashtra's identity, Maharashtra's religion, and Maharashtra's prestige. The reason for this is corruption and corruption has increased so much, corruption has eroded Maharashtra to such an extent that Maharashtra can also collapse anytime, this is an example of it..."






Case Filed Against Contractor


Police in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district have registered a case against the contractor and the structural consultant in connection with the collapse of the statue, officials said on Tuesday, as reported by news agency PTI. A complaint was lodged by an assistant engineer of the Public Works Department (PWD) at Malvan police station on Monday evening.


As per the complainant, the artist and the consultant were responsible for the collapse of the statue, an official said. Based on the complaint, an FIR was registered against contractor Jaydeep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil over the statue collapse incident, he said.


They were booked under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections of attempt to commit culpable homicide, act endangering the life or personal safety of others, attempt to murder, and cheating was registered along with Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act (mischief causing damage to public property), the official said.


The FIR in the statue collapse incident came after a complaint by the Public Works Department (PWD). According to the complaint, the statue's construction was of poor quality, and the nuts and bolts used in the structure were found to be rusted.


PWD's Warning Letter


The PWD Assistant Engineer Malvan Division had shot off a warning letter to the Indian Navy’s Area Coastal Security Officer Commander Abhishek Karbhari on the precarious condition of the statue.


Besides PWD, the 13th direct descendent of the legendary Maratha warrior king, Chhatrapati Yuvraj Chhatrapati, had also red-flagged the statue’s design, and how it was erected in ‘haste’ for the unveiling by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 4, 2023.


A PWD letter (August 20, 2024) forewarned that the nuts-bolts that were used to join the pieces in the metal statue - designed and created by Kalyan (Thane) sculptor Jaydeep Apte – had rusted and corroded due to the twin effects of the monsoon and the salty air from the Arabian Sea, as reported by news agency IANS.


As a result of these, the Chhatrapati’s statue was looking ugly, attracting criticism from the locals, public representatives, and hordes of tourists trooping there.


The PWD requested Navy Commander Karbhari to raise the matter at his level with the sculptor to find a permanent solution to the problems on top priority, but the cautionary went unheeded. The missive added that in June, barely six months after the statue was unveiled, Apte had gone there and carried out certain repair works on the structure.