Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said that the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue is a tragic and unfortunate event and there is no need to politicise the matter.
“This is a deeply tragic event, and no one should exploit it for political gain,” says Fadnavis.
Speaking to reporters, Fadnavis pressed for a thorough investigation and assured that strict action would be taken against those responsible.
“The matter has already been reported to the police and they are expected to take further action based on the Navy’s findings,” Fadnavis said.
“The construction work of the statue was not overseen by the state government but by the Navy. The individuals responsible for the fabrication and installation of the statue might have overlooked important local factors such as high wind speed and the quality of the iron used,” added Fadnavis.
He also mentioned that a grand statue would be made at the same spot in Malvan tehsil in the coastal district, around 480km from Mumbai.
The opposition has attacked the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti coalition in the state over the statue collapse, alleging corruption, and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Speaking about the opposition's attack over the statue collapse matter, Fadnavis asked them to refrain from seeing the tragedy through the prism of the upcoming elections as Maharashtra as such tactics will not help Maharashtra.
“Corruption has no place here, and it is surprising to hear such statements from the opposition leaders,” he said.
A 35-foot-tall statue of the 17th century Maratha empire founder, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rajkot fort in Sindhudurg district on December 4 last year, collapsed on Monday afternoon.
(Inputs from PTI)
