‘Today I bow my head,’ PM Modi issues apology over Shivaji statue collapse

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (Aug 30) tendered an apology for the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg.

“In 2013, BJP named me as PM candidate. The first thing I did was sit before Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's samadhi at Raigad as a devotee and started on a new journey,” Modi said in Palghar.

“Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name for us... today I bow my head and apologise to my god Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Our values ​​are different, we are not those people who keep abusing and insulting the great son of Mother India, the son of this land, Veer Savarkar. They are not ready to apologize, they are ready to go to the courts and fight,” he added.

The collapse of the statue, which was inaugurated by PM Modi himself on December 4 last year, triggered a massive political controversy. Leaders from the opposition Congress party had demanded the PM tender an apology.

On Thursday (Aug 29), Maharashtra Chief MinisterEknath Shinde saidthat the state government is taking swift action to reconstruct the statue, and two committees have been formed to investigate its collapse in the Malvan area.

Meanwhile, one person was arrested in connection with the incident on Thursday. Chetan Patil, the structural consultant named in a previously registered FIR, was detained from Kolhapur, a police statement said.

Earlier, on Wednesday, Patil had explained that he had submitted the platform's design to the Indian Navy via the state's public works department (PWD) and he was not involved in the statue's construction.

He further claimed that a Thane-based company handled the statue-related work, while his role was limited to the platform.

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole earlier claimed that the sculptor who was involved in the statue's construction was close to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

(With inputs from agencies)