Social media post claims cracks appearing on Statue of Unity; FIR registered

Kevadia (Gujarat): The police have registered a case against an unidentified person after a post on social media platform X claimed that "cracks" have started appearing on the Statue of Unity in Gujarat and it can "fall anytime", an official said on Tuesday.

The 182-metre tall statue, built at Kevadia in Narmada district as a tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the first home minister of independent India, is a major tourist attraction.

A post written in Hindi on the handle "RaGa4India" at 9.52 am on September 8 stated that the statue "can fall anytime as cracks have started appearing on it".

The post also carried an old photograph of the structure, which appeared to be from the time of its construction.

The post is unavailable for viewing as the X user has since deleted it.

A case was registered under section 353 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) pertaining to making, publishing or circulating any statement, false information, rumour, or report, etc, to cause fear or alarm to the public, the official said.

The FIR was registered based on a complaint by Abhishek Ranjan Sinha, deputy collector, unit-1, Statue of Unity Area Development and Tourism Governance Authority, he said.

"By spreading such false news, an attempt has been made to create fear among the people and to disturb the peace," the FIR stated.

The statue, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2018, sees heavy footfall of tourists.