Devendra Fadnavis urges oppn not to politicise Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse

Nagpur, Aug 28 (IANS) Hours after the clash between the Shiv Sena-UBT workers and BJP MP Narayan Rane’s supporters at Malvan in Sindhudurg district, Deputy Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday urged the opposition not to politicise the issue of the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue.

“It is my request that no one should play politics in the Malvan incident. The collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja’s statue was a tragic incident. After proper investigation, the guilty should be brought to the fore, and action should be taken against them. A grand statue should be erected in that place again. We have focused on all three aspects. The Navy has taken the matter seriously and has constituted an inquiry committee. This committee has inspected the place of the statue. The Navy will take appropriate action on this. Action will be taken against those found guilty,” said Fadnavis.

He further said that the Navy in its report will give the reasons that led to the collapse of the statue and the mistakes that were made during the installation.

“The Public Works Department has also lodged an FIR with the police. Further action will be taken by the police after the Navy report. Also, as announced by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, a grand statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, will be installed at the same place again with the help of the Navy,” he added.

Fadnavis targeted the opposition for stepping up its attacks against the state government over the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s statue.

“Everything should not be seen through the lens of elections. Such mistakes should not happen,” he said, reiterating that the opposition should not play politics over the matter.

Reacting to Sharad Pawar’s criticism of the government over the matter, he said: “The former Union Minister is a senior leader. This statue was installed by the Navy. Sharad Pawar knows that it was not installed by the state government”.

To a question on the alleged threat by BJP MP Narayan Rane to Shiv Sena-UBT supporters and journalists, Fadnavis downplayed it, saying: “Narayan Rane speaks aggressively, but I don’t think he wanted to threaten.”

–IANS

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