Shivaji statue collapse: MVA holds protest march from Mumbai's Hutatma Chowk

Mumbai: Leaders of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi on Sunday held a march from the iconic Hutatma Chowk to Gateway of India in south Mumbai to protest against the collapse of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district.

The statue of the 17th century Maratha warrior king at Rajkot fort in Malvan tehsil, some 480 kilometres from here, fell on August 26. It was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 4, 2023, on the occasion of Navy Day.

NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, Congress state unit chief Nana Patole and the party's Mumbai head Varsha Gaikwad began the protest march by laying wreaths at Hutatma Chowk, a memorial to those martyred in the 'Samyukta Maharashtra' agitation.

The protest march is to give voice to the anger of the people of Maharashtra over the statue collapsing just eight months after it was unveiled by the PM, said NCP (SP) leader Rajesh Tope and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sunil Prabhu.

The protest is peaceful, Prabhu told reporters.

Among those who took part in the march, which began sometime after 11am, include Kolhapur Congress MP Shahu Chhatrapati, NCP (SP) Baramati MP Supriya Sule and MLA Anil Deshmukh.

A bust of the legendary warrior king was placed at Hutatma Chowk, while those taking part in the protest march carried placards denouncing the statue collapse and shouted slogans against the Eknath Shinde government.

NCP (SP) chief Pawar walked some distance as part of the protest march, which will culminate a couple of kilometres away at the Gateway of India, before getting into his vehicle.