The collapse of an enormous statue of a seventeenth Century ruler has sparked protests and a political controversy within the western Indian state of Maharashtra.
Shivaji Shahaji Bhosale was a warrior king whose exploits towards the Mughals made him a hero throughout his personal lifetime. He’s revered within the state and celebrated as an icon of the Hindu proper.
So the statue’s collapse, weeks earlier than elections are due in Maharashtra, has put the state’s ruling coalition on the again foot and given opposition events a potent situation to boost.
It even drew an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the statue in December and whose Bharatiya Janata Occasion (BJP) is a part of Maharashtra’s ruling coalition.
“I prolong my apologies to all those that worship Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (Emperor Shivaji) as their revered deity. I do know their sentiments are harm,” he mentioned on Friday.
The BJP is a part of an alliance which runs the state authorities together with breakaway factions of two regional events, the Shiv Sena and the Nationwide Congress Occasion (NCP).
Even members of the NCP held “silent protests” final week, demanding motion from the state authorities that they’re a part of.
Constructed at a value of 23.6m rupees ($281,285; £214,185), the 35-ft (10.6m) statue in Sindhudurg district collapsed on 26 August amid heavy monsoon rains.
The opposition has demanded Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s resignation, alleging corruption in its development.
Senior opposition chief Sharad Pawar mentioned throughout a protest rally that quite a few statues of Shivaji throughout the state have been nonetheless standing however solely the newly put in one had collapsed.
“There was corruption within the course of of putting in the statue. That is an insult to Chhatrapati Maharaj,” he alleged.
Mr Shinde has denied the costs, saying the statue collapsed due to robust winds within the coastal city.
Ravindra Chavan, a state minister, mentioned that the general public works division, which he heads, had already knowledgeable the Indian Navy – liable for overseeing the statue’s development – about rust in its nuts and bolts.”
Ashish Shelar, the BJP’s state chief, has additionally apologised publicly, saying the error might be rectified and the culprits will face punishment. Police have arrested one individual, the structural marketing consultant on the challenge, and say they’re looking out for the statue’s sculptor.
Formally topped as Chhatrapati – king in Sanskrit – in 1674 at Rajkot fort the place the collapsed statue was put in, Shivaji dominated over a Maratha kingdom which included elements of western, central and southern India. He was seen as an astute chief who efficiently made alliances with or militarily resisted the ruling powers of his time.
He has change into an more and more central determine in Maharashtra’s politics of late and no political social gathering can afford to disregard him or be accused of insulting him. Marathas from Shivaji’s caste dominate the political panorama of the state – 12 of 20 chief ministers for the reason that state’s formation have been Marathas.
Politicians would additionally not choose to inflame the feelings of the Maratha group, who’ve repeatedly protested in recent times demanding quotas in authorities jobs and academic establishments.
So the opposition will hope to border the difficulty as an insult to the state and Maratha pleasure.
The opposition alliance, referred to as Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has organised state-wide protests. In response, the BJP has held counter-protests, accusing the MVA of politicising the difficulty.
