Security tightened in Mumbai ahead of MVA protest over Shivaji statue collapse

Mumbai: The Mumbai police have tightened security in the area in response to the Maha Vikas Aghadi's (MVA) call for a protest march following the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue.

The MVA will hold a protest march today from Hutatma Chowk to the Gateway of India on Sunday. Police and other security personnel have been deployed throughout the city.

A 35-foot-tall statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Sindhudurg district collapsed on August 26. It had been unveiled on December 4 last year as part of Navy Day celebrations, which were held in Sindhudurg for the first time.


Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray criticized the BJP-led Mahayuti government over the statue's collapse at Rajkot Fort last month. He added, "Two days ago, people saw how the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj fell and the kinds of statements being made. Raj Bhavan is on the seashore, yet even the Governor's hat never flew off. They say the statue fell due to strong winds--how is this possible?"

Youth Congress leaders and other party workers were detained by Mumbai police on Friday while protesting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the city, demanding a public apology from him over the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he bow his head and apologise to the people of Maharashtra who were hurt by the collapse of the Shivaji statue at Sindhudurg.

"Those who consider Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as their deity and have been deeply hurt, I bow my head and apologise to them. Our values are different. For us, nothing is bigger than our deity," PM Modi said.

Earlier, Chetan Patil, the structural consultant of the Shivaji Maharaj statue that collapsed in the Malvan area of Sindhudurg, was arrested from Kolhapur.

The FIR was registered under sections 109, 110, 125, 318, and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), as confirmed by Sindhudurg Police.

On Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that the state government is taking decisions on a war footing for the reconstruction of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and two committees have been formed, including one to investigate the collapse of the statue in the Malvan area of the state.

A joint technical committee headed by the Indian Navy with representatives from the Maharashtra Government and technical experts is being formed to investigate the unfortunate damage to the Statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj installed at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg, subsequent to the exceptional weather conditions in the region, said an official release from the Indian Navy.