Mumbai: Sindhudurg Police in Maharashtra has filed an FIR against contractor Jaydeep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil for the collapse of the 35-foot-tall Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue on Monday.
“FIR has been registered by local police in the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue incident against contractor Jaydeep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Sections 109, 110, 125, 318, and 3(5),” the Sindhudurg Police said.
The statue which was unveiled 8 months ago on Navy Day, was a dedication to the citizens of Sindhudurg. The Indian Navy released a statement on Monday promising to investigate the cause of the incident.
“Along with the State Government and concerned specialists, the Navy has deputed a team to immediately investigate the cause of this unfortunate accident and initiate steps to repair, restore and reinstate the statue at the earliest,” they said.
Chief minister Eknath Shinde said the statue fell due to damage caused by strong winds. He also vowed to find out exactly why the statue collapsed. Shinde added the Maharashtra government will find out the reasons behind this incident and reinstall the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the same place.
He said, “The incident that happened is unfortunate. This statue was erected by the Navy. They had also designed it. But due to strong winds of around 45 km/h, it fell and got damaged.”
Public works minister Ravindra Chavan visited the site as soon as incident occurred and will be investigating the causes of the statue’s collapse under chief minister Shinde’s orders.
The Indian Navy has also pledged their help to the state forces in restoring the statue and provide help with the probe into the statue’s fall.
The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue was first unveiled by prime minister Narendra Modi at Rajkot Fort, Sindhdurg, Maharashtra, on December 4, 2023.
Opposition parties have been asking for the contractor of the statue to be held responsible.
Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MP Supriya Sule posted on X, saying that, “The work of erecting this statue was assigned to a contractor from Thane district… We demand that this person and their organisation be blacklisted by all departments… A thorough investigation is essential to determine why the quality of this statue’s work was so poor and to address other related issues.”
