Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday apologised for the recent collapse of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, which was erected last year. This comes after the 35-foot statue of the 17th century Maratha empire founder, unveiled by the Prime Minister on December 4 last year, collapsed on August 26 afternoon. The incident has sparked widespread concern and criticism across the state, given the historical and cultural significance of the Maratha warrior king.
Addressing a gathering in Maharashtra's Palghar, the Prime Minister said Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name for him. "Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name for us... today I bow my head and apologise to my god Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Our values are different, we are not those people who keep abusing and insulting the great son of Mother India, the son of this land, Veer Savarkar. They are not ready to apologize, they are ready to go to the courts and fight," he said. "Those who consider Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as their deity and have been deeply hurt, I bow my head and apologise to them. Our values are different. For us, nothing is bigger than our deity," the PM added.
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Ajit Pawar vows to reerect grand structure of Shivaji
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday visited the Rajkot fort in Malvan where the statue had collapsed and vowed to erect a grand structure of the warrior king at the same place. In a post on X, Pawar called Shivaji the pride and self-respect of Maharashtra. “Very soon, a grand statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will be installed at the same place. This is my word,” Pawar said. On Wednesday, Pawar apologised to the people of the state for the collapse of the structure, which was installed in the coastal Sindhudurg district’s Malvan tehsil, around 480km from Mumbai.
Shivaji Maharaj's statue collapses
The statue of Maratha King Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a fort in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district, collapsed on August 26. The 35-foot statue collapsed at Rajkot Fort in Malvan. PM Modi had inaugurated the statue on December 4 last year on the occasion of Navy Day. He had also participated in the celebrations at the fort. Meanwhile, the statue collapse incident has snowballed into a political controversy with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) targeting the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra and seeking Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's resignation.
ALSO READ: Ajit Pawar, Maharashtra Deputy CM, apologises for collapse of Shivaji Maharaj statue in Sindhudurg
