Devendra Fadnavis unveils 91-foot statue of Shivaji Maharaj

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government was embarrassed and a major election issue nine months after the collapse of the 35-foot statue in Sindhudurg area, which opened on Sunday at another statue of the warrior king in Rajkot Fort Fort.Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis unveils a new 91-foot bronze statue of Shivaji Maharaj in Rajkot Fort in Malvan. He said calling the statue “magnificent and sacred”, “but there are all kinds of storms and whirlwinds around Konkan, but this statue will bear all kinds of winds. This statue will bear any adverse weather for the next 100 years.” Fadnavis’ assertion that the statue can withstand strong winds is important because the early statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji collapsed within eight months in installation at Rajkot Fort. The statue fell.
Opposition in Maharashtra claims that corruption exists in the contracts involved in the construction of the statue. NCP (SP)’s Sharad Pawar even claimed that corruption caused the statue to collapse, which also became an election issue.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is a highly respected figure in Maharashtra’s history and the opposition has also made it a campaign issue, saying the statue’s fall is a bad omen of the country. The awkward Maharashtra government then announced that they would build a larger Shivaji Maharaj statue on site and submit FIR to the statue’s contractor and structural consultant.

Fadnavis said on Sunday that the surrounding area will be developed for tourists who can observe the grandeur of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.