Maharashtra Deputy CM Condemns Opposition Over Shivaji Statue Collapse

Deputy CM Fadnavis criticizes the opposition for politicizing the collapse of the Shivaji statue in Sindhudurg. PM Modi apologized to the people of Maharashtra. The 35-foot-tall statue had been inaugurated less than nine months ago.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday criticized the opposition for what he described as their "pettiness" over the collapse of the Shivaji statue at Sindhudurg. This came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered an apology to the people of Maharashtra who were deeply hurt by the incident.

Speaking to the media, Fadnavis said, "The opposition is only seeing the politics in the incident, they cannot see beyond the politics. The Prime Minister has openly apologized to all the devotees of Shivaji. Doing politics on this is the pettiness of the opposition. We do not need the Congress's certificate."

Earlier, PM Modi, while addressing a gathering at Malvan in Maharashtra's Palghar district, apologized for the incident, saying, "Those who consider Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as their deity and have been deeply hurt, I bow my head and apologize to them. Our values are different. For us, nothing is bigger than our deity." The 35-foot-tall statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had been inaugurated less than nine months ago before its collapse on August 26.

(With inputs from agencies.)