Bihar deputy CM Sushil Modi gets stuck twice in Statue of Unity elevator

In an embarrassment to the Gujarat government, Bihar's deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi along with another state Gujarat minister and officials got stuck in the Statue of Unity elevator twice on Tuesday. According to reports, the lift stopped working due to overloading when ministers were on way to the viewing gallery in the statue constructed at 152 metres.

Gujarat cabinet minister Saurabh Patel, government officials, security personnel and a media entourage were also present with Modi in the elevator.

As per a ToI report, the elevator first did not move on the ground floor as the doors remained closed for a while because of overloading. Security personnel had to force open the doors and some media persons were asked to leave the lift to re-start the elevator again.


After that, the lift again stopped for a minute before reaching the viewing gallery.

"The incident happened due to overloading. After some persons exited the elevator, it started working. The snag lasted hardly a minute," Ahmedabad Mirror quoted Vice Chairman and CEO of Gujarat Maritime Board Mukesh Kumar, who was present on the spot, as saying.

This is the second time when the lifts at the grand Statue of Unity have malfunctioned. On the day of inauguration, nearly 200 visitors were stuck at the viewing gallery because the elevators stopped working. All the visitors had to take the staircase to come down.