Malvan (Maharashtra), Aug 30 (IANS): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP national president Ajit Pawar on Friday visited the Rajkot Fort at Malvan in Sindhudurg district, the site of the fall of the statue and reviewed the ground level situation.

This comes two days after he apologised for the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue amid public outcry.

In his post on X, Pawar said, "A few days ago, the unfortunate incident of the fall of a statue of the legendary Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj erected at the Rajkot fort in Malvan took place. Visited the site today and reviewed it. Also inspected the Rajkot fort. Shivarai is our self-respect, our identity. Soon a strong and sturdy statue of Maharaj will be erected once again." Pawar visited the Rajkot Fort in the early hours ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Maharashtra visit in the day.

Ajit Pawar in his apology had also said, "The collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue is quite shocking. Whoever did what, should be investigated. Whoever is guilty in this case, be it senior officials or lower officials or a contractor should be punished. That contractor should be blacklisted.’’

"While erecting the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was there a scientific study done of the important aspects like geographical conditions and climate? The state government has probed the quality of the material used to make the statue and filed a case against the people connected with the erection of the statue," the Deputy CM said.

He further added that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s statue will be reinstated at Rajkot Fort as soon as possible but strict legal action will be taken against those who indulged in such laxity.

The Dy CM's visit deserves importance as Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday said that he would apologise 100 times as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is a matter of pride. The timing is also crucial when the Maha Vikas Aghadi government is stepping up attacks against the MahaYuti government on this issue and announced an agitation at Hutatma Chowk in south Mumbai on Sunday.

Pawar’s visit also came a day after NCP functionalities across the state held sit-in silent protests against the collapse of the statue which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December last year. NCP has demanded stern action against those responsible for the fall of the statue and the government should erect on a war footing a new imposing statue and the memorial to pay tribute to the Maratha warrior and legendary leader who changed the course of Indian history.

The NCP’s move to hold a sit-in silent protest was to reiterate its commitment towards the ideology of Chhatrapati Shivaji, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, Dr BR Ambedkar and Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj despite joining hands with the BJP and Shiv Sena in the state.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday announced the establishment of a joint technical committee comprising civil engineers, experts representatives of IITs and Navy officers to investigate its reasons and fix the responsibility for the collapse of the statue.

CM Shinde has also directed to appoint a committee of representatives of JJ School of Arts and IIT, Civil Engineers, renowned sculptors from Maharashtra and technical officers of the Navy to suggest a design for the statue in a new grand format.