Was study done before deciding height of Shivaji Maharaj's statue: Danve

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve on Friday targeted the Maharashtra government over the collapse of Shivaji Maharaj's statue and asked Chief Minister Eknath Shinde whether a scientific study was carried out before deciding the specifics of the statue like its height.

He also sought to know if a specific height of the statue was maintained to fulfil the political ambitions of someone.

A political row has erupted after the 35-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, built at Rajkot fort in Malvan tehsil of coastal Sindhudurg district, collapsed on August 26.

The Maharashtra government has set up a technical committee comprising engineers, IIT experts and Navy officials to probe the reasons behind the statue collapse. Police have arrested Chetan Patil, the structural consultant named in the FIR along with artist Jaydeep Apte, from Kolhapur.

Questioning the government over the issue, Danve, who is the Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Legislative Council, said in a post on X, "The chief minister formed a committee over the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue after we (opposition members) went to the Rajkot fort. This issue is linked to the soul of Maharashtra. If the CM respects Shivaji Maharaj, he would answer my questions." Danve asked whether the members of the committee formed by the government have even made clay idols of Lord Ganesh in their lives. "Are they eligible and competent to study the collapsed statue?" he said.

"Was any scientific study carried out to decide the height of the statue? Was the strength of the island on which it was to be erected considered? Or was the height of the statue fixed just randomly to fulfil the political ambitions of anyone?" Danve asked.

He also sought to know if the remains of the Rajkot fort were damaged to construct a new red coloured fortification around the structure.

The leader of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party asked whether some experts were not included in the committee for the love of some other members.