Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse: 'Political selfishness' over kings, maharaja and saints not correct, says Mayawati

Mayawati. File Pic

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Friday said that people should think positively about any matter related to kings, maharaja, saints and gurus belonging to any community or religion but "political selfishness" is not right, reported the PTI.

Mayawati was referring to the collapse of the statue of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on August 26 in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra.

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In a series of posts X, Mayawati said, "The installation of their statues and naming them should be done with a positive attitude not with any kind of malicious or political selfishness hidden behind them, which is visible now. Very unfortunate," she said.

The BSP chief said, "Like Maharashtra, in any other state, if a statue falls, strict action should be taken against the concerned officials, and no politics should be done under its guise, this would be better."

The statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a fort in Sindhudurg district eight months ago. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde blamed the "strong winds" as the reason behind its collapse.

The collapse of the statue triggered a huge political row ahead of assembly elections in Maharashtra with the opposition targeting the Shinde-led government.
On Wednesday, the sculptor-contractor Jaydeep Apte wanted in connection with the collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji, was arrested from Kalyan in Thane district, according to the PTI.

Apte was held days after police in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against contractor Jaydeep Apte in connection with the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue at Rajkot fort.

An LOC is usually issued to airports and all other exit points to stop a person from fleeing the country.

Apte, a Thane-based sculptor, had executed the contract to make the statue.

Jaideep Apte took advantage of the darkness to avoid police and came to his residence in Kalyan to meet his wife and mother, but the police arrested him, the official said.

The police had earlier also issued a lookout against Jaideep Apte.

"Apte was absconding since the statue collapsed and on Wednesday the police succeeded in nabbing him," said an official.

(with PTI inputs)