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'There was arrogance': Uddhav Thackeray on PM's apology over Shivaji statue collapse
During the MVA alliance's protest against the incident in Mumbai, Thackeray said the people of Maharashtra will not accept PM Modi's apology.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray said on Sunday that there was a hint of arrogance on the face of Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the latter apologised over the collapse of a statue of Maratha icon Shivaji Maharaj in Maharashtra.
During the MVA alliance's protest against the incident in Mumbai, Uddhav Thackeray said the people of Maharashtra will not accept PM Narendra Modi's apology.
"There was arrogance on the face of Prime Minister Narendra Modi while tendering an apology," he said.
He claimed PM Modi apologised to hide the corruption that led to the collapse of the statue.
"Modi tendered an apology to cover the corruption. Wherever there was the hand of Modi, including the Ram temple, Parliament House and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue – every work was proved to be of low quality," he added.
"Maharashtra will not accept Modi's apology and will teach the ruling party a lesson," he added.
View: L-1, mediocrity, processes and poor skills behind Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse
Referring to BJP's counter-protest, Uddhav Thackeray said they should leave India.
"Whatever is going on in Maharashtra is not politics. Today anti-Shivaji Maharaj people (BJP) are holding protests against the MVA. Let them do it. We want to tell them – get out of India," he added.
NCP(SP) leader Sharad Pawar said the stand of the ruling party has insulted Shivaji Maharaj.
"In Maharashtra, there are many such statues of Shivaji Maharaj but the one at Malvan fell. There is a general feeling among the people that corruption took place in the project, which is an insult to Shivaji Maharaj," he said.
Also read: Prime Minister Modi apologises for collapse of Shivaji Maharaj statue in Malvan
Leaders of the opposition's Maha Vikas Aghadi on Sunday held a march from the iconic Hutatma Chowk to Gateway of India in south Mumbai to protest against the collapse of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district.
The statue was unveiled by PM Modi on December 4, 2023, on the occasion of Navy Day.
Meanwhile, chief minister Eknath Shinde said Shivaji Maharaj can't become a political issue.
“This is a very sad thing for us…Shivaji Maharaj cannot be a political issue for us, this is a matter of identity and faith for us. The incident that happened was unfortunate. Doing politics on it is a sad thing and the opposition is doing politics on this. Two JCBs were brought to break the statue of Shivaji Maharaj in Karnataka, and that statue was uprooted, those who did this should be beaten…The people of Maharashtra are wise, they are seeing this. In the coming elections, the people of Maharashtra will beat them with shoes,” he added.
