Eight months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a 28-foot statue of Maratha ruler Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at Rajkot Fort in Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg on Navy Day on December 4 last year, the statue collapsed on August 26, sparking a political storm amid questions over the quality of construction.    

An FIR has been lodged against the 24-year-old Kalyan-based contractor and sculptor Jaideep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil at the Malvan police station. But Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has come to their defense, claiming it was designed and constructed by the Indian Navy. Meanwhile, the Indian Navy has deployed its own team to investigate the cause of the collapse and begin restoration. 

On August 20, however, just a week before the incident, the Malvan Public Works Department had alerted the navy’s area coastal security officer and commander Abhishek Karbhari about the “deteriorating condition” of the statue. Newslaundry viewed the government department’s letter.  

The said letter stated that Apte had carried out repair work on the statue in June. But the nuts and bolts used in the statue had “rusted” due to exposure to rain and sea conditions. This had also marred the statue’s appearance, sparking discontent among locals and tourists. The letter said, “Please take the necessary actions at your level and instruct the concerned sculptor to address and resolve this issue promptly and effectively.”

Constructed in just 3 months, ‘subpar material’, ‘not paid for work’

The statue was remarkably constructed and unveiled in just three months — a timeframe Apte claimed was much shorter than the typical three years required for such a project, as he claimed in a conversation with Marathi newspaper Sanatan Prabhat. 

But two months after the inauguration in February this year, Apte said on X that he “did not get a single rupee” for the work and he had “mortgaged each and everything” he had to construct the statue. 

He tagged the PMO, CMO, and the Indian Navy’s official accounts and wrote: “Completed such a big project in 1/4th times by mortgaging each and everything we have. We didn’t get a single rupee of work, but I got a lot of anxiety, frustration, and heartache. This was not expected from the Indian Navy.”

In August last year, the integrated headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (Navy) issued a tender for the construction of the statue, subsequently awarding the contract to Apte. He had previously worked on various statues, but it was his first experience with a 28-foot monument. His past projects included a 6.5-foot statue of a Sikh soldier for the UK-based Sikh Soldiers Organisation in 2019, which was installed in Yorkshire to honor Sikh soldiers from World War II. Additionally, in 2023, Apte completed another statue of a Sikh soldier for the Australia-based Fateh Foundation in Glenwood, Sydney. 

Locals have alleged that the statue’s rushed and haphazard construction – so it could be unveiled on Navy Day by PM Modi – and use of subpar materials have resulted in its collapse.   

Nitin Valke, 61, a businessman and resident of Malvan in Sindhudurg, claimed that “the project was budgeted at around Rs 4.70 crore, but less than Rs 1.5 crore was actually invested”. He said, “The primary reason for the collapse is its rushed construction. It was hurriedly built and inaugurated, seemingly to gain electoral advantage in the Lok Sabha elections.”

Valke further said, “Even the sculptor admitted that he completed what would normally be a three-year project in just a few months. Given that the statue was placed near the sea, the iron components, including nuts and bolts, should have been treated for rust prevention. Unfortunately, this was not done. While even small fishing trawlers use rust-resistant steel and copper bolts, the ones used in this statue were ordinary iron, which led to significant internal corrosion due to the coastal exposure. For us, Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is revered like a deity, and it is shameful that such important work was rushed and poorly executed.”

Bhushan Sawant, a Sindhudurg-based journalist, claimed that the materials used in the construction “were subpar and not suited for the region’s heavy rainfall and coastal exposure”. 

He said, “The joints of the statue were made using welding and standard nuts and bolts. From the beginning, there were concerns about the statue due to its rushed construction., which accelerates rusting. They should have taken these environmental factors into account and used higher-quality materials to ensure the statue's durability.”

Newslaundry tried to reach out to Apte regarding the matter, but he didn’t respond. We also reached out to the Malvan Police station incharge, Pravin Kolhe. This report will be updated on receiving a response. 

Shivaji’s kin wrote to Modi last year over statue’s quality   

Days after the statue’s inauguration, Sambhaji Raje Chatrapati, the 13th descendant of Shivaji, also wrote to PM Modi, expressing “disappointment with the statue’s quality”.  

The letter sent on December 12, 2023 commended the central government for honouring Shivaji but pointed out that the statue did not meet the standards of a prominent sculpture. “Despite the availability of modern techniques, the statue unveiled at Rajkot Fort appears to have been rushed and lacks the craftsmanship one would expect. Many parts of the statue, including the hands, legs, and face, are poorly executed.”

Sambhaji also questioned whether the statue was intended as a permanent installation or a temporary piece, with plans for a better-quality statue to be installed later. He urged that a government committee be formed to thoroughly assess and verify the statue’s quality and oversee the creation of a new and superior statue.

He told Newslaundry, “The statue that was hastily constructed to be inaugurated by the PM has now collapsed. We had previously written to the Prime Minister requesting the installation of a statue that meets high standards. It is deeply unfortunate that the statue has fallen within a year. A properly constructed statue of Maharaj must now be erected in its place.”

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