Imitating the BJP-Shiv Sena state government in Maharashtra, Congress president Rahul Gandhi, on Saturday, sneered at the alliance and declined the occurrence of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s statue toppling in Sindhudurg as an unusual incident, as he said that the actual reason is the bad thought process of the government. While addressing a gathering at an event at Kolhapur where he had released the statue of the King of the Great Marathas Kings – Shivaji Maharaj, Gandhi said that the concept which the present Govt was promoting was against the principles which Shivaji Maharaj had ever stood for.
“Today, the Congress party is fighting the same enemy that was fought by the great Shivaji Maharaj. They called themselves BJP, and they raised a statue of Shivaji Maharaj, but in days it fell down. This was not just a technicality; no this was a message. The statue fell because they were wrong. To pay tribute to Shivaji Maharaj, you have to also fight for his principles, it seems,” Rahul Gandhi said. He asserted that the BJP, which hails Shivaji, has not been able to appreciate the real meaning of the legendary Maratha king, and hence, this has been personified by the building’s collapse.
He also accused the government for discriminating against the others, and he mentioned that the India tribal President was not even allowed to participate in the inauguration of the Ram Mandir and the newly built Parliament session. It is not just about power struggle; it is about ideas. Hailing Shivaji Maharaj while violating the constitution and dismantling democratic institutions will not work,” Gandhi said.
The structure, measuring 35 feet, collapsed; this statue was inaugurated by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Navy Day in December 2023. Afterwards, PM Modi extended his apology, admitting that Maharaj was not only a king but also ‘our God’.
CM Eknath Shinde said they will not spare those who were involved and later arrested the sculptor Jaideep Apte and consultant Chetan Patil.
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