Shivaji Statue Collapse: A panel formed to investigate the collapse of Shivaji's statue and make a new statue; CM Shinde's announcement

The Maharashtra government has constituted a technical committee to investigate the reasons behind the collapse of the statue of Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of the 17th century Maratha Empire, in Malvan in coastal Konkan and to construct a new statue. The committee comprises engineers, IIT experts, and naval officers.

A press release was issued by the Chief Minister's Office after midnight. It said that the government has constituted a committee to build a grand statue befitting the reputation of the warrior king. Earlier, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde chaired a meeting with senior ministers, bureaucrats, and naval officers at his official residence Varsha in south Mumbai on Wednesday night. The decision to constitute the committee was taken only after the meeting.

FIR lodged against contractor

An FIR has been lodged against the contractor of the 35-foot-high statue in the case. The FIR has been lodged following a complaint by the Public Works Department, claiming that the construction of the statue was of poor quality. The nuts and bolts used in it were found to be rusted.

Incident of the afternoon of 26 August

The statue was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 4 December. Just eight months after this, it fell on the afternoon of 26 August. The opposition alliance Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has strongly criticized the Maharashtra government over this incident. They are demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar apologized to the people of the state for the incident and expressed commitment to punish the culprits.

Uproar over the statement of the cabinet minister

Earlier, Maharashtra Cabinet Minister Deepak Kesarkar on Wednesday defended his statement that 'something good may happen due to the fall of Chhatrapati Shivaji's statue'. Kesarkar, who came under the target of the opposition, said that his statement was misinterpreted. State Education Minister Kesarkar, who hails from Sindhudurg, said that we want the largest statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji to be installed in Sindhudurg, which was the then headquarters of Shivaji's navy. The fall of the statue is an unfortunate incident. A 100-foot-tall statue should be built at this place. Let us tell you that on Tuesday, referring to this incident, Kesarkar said, "Perhaps something good may come out... that is why this incident happened.