First arrest over Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse in Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg
Chetan Patil claimed that a Thane-based company completed the job and that he was not the structural consultant for the statue itself.
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Aug 29, 2024
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The fall of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue in the Sindhudurg region of Maharashtra was reported to have been caused by Chetan Patil, a structural consultant, who was detained in Kolhapur on Friday, according to police.
Kolhapur superintendent of police Mahendra Pandit stated that he was taken into custody late on Thursday night and turned over to the Sindhudurg police for additional inquiry.
On Wednesday, Patil, a Kolhapur resident, asserted that he was not the statue's structural consultant. In an interview with Marathi news channel ABP Majha, Patil, who was named in the FIR, and artist Jaydeep Apte clarified that they had not been engaged in the statue's construction but had instead submitted the platform's design to the Indian Navy through the state's public works department (PWD).
Furthermore, he stressed that his involvement was confined to the platform and that the statue-related work was undertaken by a business based in Thane. On Monday at around 1 pm, the 35-foot monument of the Maratha warrior ruler from the 17th century that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had unveiled at Rajkot Fort in Malvan tehsil of Sindhudurg on Navy Day (December 4) of the previous year, fell.
Police said that a contractor has also been arrested in the case.
The state government led by Eknath Shinde was embarrassed by the episode, which also prompted demonstrations and censure from opposing parties. Shinde mentioned that the Indian Navy planned and built the statue.
Chief of the State Congress, Nana Patole, asserted on Thursday that the statue's creator was associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Following statements made by State Cultural Affairs Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar that the sculptor was linked to Congressman Rahul Gandhi, he made his remarks.
The occurrence is a "insult to the legacy" of the Maratha emperor of the 17th century, according to the Opposition. The Congress also requested an apology from Modi on the incident.
In the meantime, silent protests were held on Thursday in Pune and other western Maharashtra cities by the NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, calling for punishment against the people accountable for the statue's collapse.
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