Sculptor Jaydeep Apte who was awarded the contract to build the 35-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj that crashed last month, was arrested by police from Kalyan in Thane district on Wednesday, said a senior police official.
Police in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg were searching for the 24-year-old sculptor who made the statue that crashed less than nine months after it was inaugurated. Seven teams were formed by police to search the sculptor, who was arrested on Wednesday night reported PTI.
The Malvan police registered a case against Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil after the statue collapsed for negligence and other offences. Patil was arrested by the police from Kolhapur last week.
On Tuesday, Malvan police issued a Lookout Circular against Apte directing airports and all other exit points to stop him from fleeing the country. He is currently being held at the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), reported India Today.
According to media reports, Apte was awarded the contract despite having no experience in constructing such large statues.
Those Who Were Critical Must Shut Their Mouths Now: BJP
The issue drew a lot of flak for the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP government in Maharashtra from opposition's Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance. Reacting to the arrest of the sculptor, the Bharatiya Janata Party said that those who were critical must shut their mouths now.
"Those who were critical of our government must shut their mouths now," said BJP leader Pravin Darekar. "It is true that police took a little long to arrest Jaydeep Apte. We are not taking any credit for arresting, but the police did their job," he said.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) Sushama Andhare said that the state government should not try to take any credit for arresting Apte because it is the government's duty. "state government should not try to take any credit for arresting Apte because it is the government's duty," she said.