MVA to hold protest in Mumbai on September 1 over Shivaji statue collapse

Mumbai: With the collapse of the statue of Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji snowballing into a major issue ahead of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (I.N.D.I.A.) is planning a major show of strength on Sunday.

The MVA parties—the Congress, the Uddhav Thackeray-headed Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP)—will hold a protest march, which will commence from Hutatma Chowk-Flora Fountain and proceed via Hinduhrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Chowk and end at the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji off the Gateway of India.

Thackeray, Pawar and the state Congress leadership, including its president Nana Patole, will take part in the protest.

The 35-foot tall statue of the Shivaji with a sword in his hand, was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Rajkot Fort in the Malvan tehsil of Sindhudurg, coinciding with Navy Day celebrations on 4 December, 2023. However, within months it collapsed, putting the ruling Maha Yuti (NDA) on a defensive mode.

Even as the BJP-led alliance scurried for cover on the issue of statue's collapse, Modi, during his visit on Friday, sought to close the issue by tendering an unqualified apology.

“In 2013, after the BJP named me as prime ministerial candidate, the first thing that I did was sit before Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's samadhi at Raigad as a devotee and started on the path of a new journey. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name or a king. For us, he is our deity. Today, I bow my head at his feet and apologise to my deity,” Modi said, tendering the apology.

The MVA, however, has rejected any apology or regret and questioned how the Thane-based sculptor Jaideep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil, who hails from Kolhapur, were selected. The FIR was registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Sections 109, 110, 125, 318, and 3(5).