Tensions seem to be rising between the ruling Mahayuti alliance partners before the assembly elections in Maharashtra. First, the rift in the Mahayuti came to the fore due to the poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections and now the collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj has fuelled the fire. On this issue, leaders of Shiv Sena, NCP and BJP are seen speaking in different voices. It is true that Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologized on Friday for the collapse of Chhatrapati’s statue. He said, ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj… is not just a name for me, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is our idol. Whatever happened in Sindhudurg recently, today I bow my head and apologize by placing my head at the feet of my idol Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.’
The 35-foot-high statue of the Maratha warrior installed at Rajkot Fort in Malvan tehsil of Sindhudurg district collapsed on August 26. This was PM Modi’s first comment after its collapse. People across the state have expressed outrage over the incident of the statue falling. The opposition targeted the government and accused it of insulting Shivaji Maharaj. Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Ambadas Danve targeted the Maharashtra government on the issue. He questioned Chief Minister Eknath Shinde whether any scientific study was done before deciding the details like the height of the statue? Was the specific height of the statue decided to fulfill someone’s political ambitions? He said that this issue is related to the soul of Maharashtra.
The Navy was held responsible
Of course, the initial reaction from the ruling coalition was mixed. First came Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who said the statue was built by the Navy and not the Maharashtra government. Shinde said on Thursday that if needed, he would not hesitate to touch the feet of the mighty ruler 100 times and apologise for the incident. He said the opposition has other issues to do politics but Shivaji Maharaj, who is revered in Maharashtra, should be kept away from it. Shinde said the Navy has demanded that the area where the statue has been installed be cordoned off for inspection and reconstruction work be started.
Silent protest by NCP workers
Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar’s party NCP, which is part of the Mahayuti government, staged a silent protest against the collapse of Shivaji’s statue. Also, demanded action against those responsible for this. NCP workers submitted a memorandum to Tehsildars and District Magistrates regarding this. In this, strict action was demanded against the artist and others responsible for the poor quality of the statue. However, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar on Friday visited the place in Rajkot Fort where the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had collapsed. He pledged to install a grand statue of Shivaji Maharaj at the same place. He described Shivaji as the pride and self-respect of Maharashtra.
‘Shivaji factor’ in Maharashtra politics
Political experts say that the government is very cautious about the incident of Shivaji’s statue falling. The reason for this is related to the previous controversies related to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. It was the year 2004 when a book by author James Lane created a huge uproar in Maharashtra. Controversial things were written about Shivaji Maharaj in it. At that time the Congress-NCP alliance was in power. The alliance made it a political issue and demanded action against the author. Also, a demand was raised to ban the book across the country. In the assembly elections that year, the public’s initial inclination was seen towards Shiv Sena and BJP. Despite this, the issue of Shivaji gaining momentum helped the alliance a lot in retaining power.
(With agency input)
