Police Search for Sculptor Jaydeep Apte After Shivaji Statue Collapse Sparks Sparks Political Outcry

Sindhudurg police in Maharashtra has formed seven teams to track down sculptor Jaydeep Apte who executed the contract to make the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj that collapsed on Rajkot fort last month, an official said on Wednesday. A joint technical committee of five members visited the fort at Malvan during the day and examined the site, said an official.

Police have been searching for Apte since the statue, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Navy Day less than nine months ago, collapsed on August 26. A Look Out Circular (LOC) too has been issued to stop Apte from leaving the country.

Teams of Sindhudurg police are searching for him at several places including Mumbai, Thane and Kolhapur. A police team visited Apte's residence in Kalyan town of Thane district, but it was locked, the official said.

After the statue collapsed, Malvan police registered a case against Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil for negligence and other offences. Patil was arrested from Kolhapur last week.

The collapse of the statue of the iconic founder of the Maratha state has triggered a huge political row ahead of assembly elections in Maharashtra with the Opposition targeting the Eknath Shinde-led government.

Police has also sent samples of the materials used for the statue as well as the platform on which it stood to a forensic science laboratory for chemical analysis.

State Congress chief Nana Patole, meanwhile, alleged in Pune that only Rs 1.5 crore were spent on the construction of the statue even though Rs 236 crore were taken for the work from the state coffers.

To chief minister Shinde's allegation that the opposition was politicising the statue collapse incident, Patole said venting anger against an insult to Shivaji Maharaj cannot be described as politicising the matter.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said if stainless steel had been used for the construction of the statue, it would not have collapsed.