Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse: Bombay HC grants bail to consultant Chetan Patil

The statue that had collapsed. File Pic

The Bombay High Court on Thursday granted bail to consultant Chetan Patil arrested in connection with the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse case, reported the PTI.

A 35-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj installed at at Rajkot fort in Malvan area of Maharashtra had collapsed leading to public unrest and political tussles between the ruling and Opposition parties.

IN PHOTOS: Mumbai Police officials help voters at city polling booths

17 hours agoPHOTO GALLERY

A statue of the iconic Maratha warrior king collapsed in Sindhudurg district on August 26, nearly nine months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled it on Navy Day.

Chetan Patil was arrested on August 30 from Kolhapur district in Maharashtra.

According to the PTI, a single bench of Justice A S Kilor on Thursday held that no case was made out to implicate Patil in the case as he had not been appointed as the structural designer of the statue.

The bench further said Patil had only submitted a structural stability report of the pedestal of the statue and the pedestal was intact even after the collapse.

Another accused, Jaydeep Apte, who was the sculptor and contractor, was also arrested in the case. The HC said it would hear his bail plea on November 25.

The Sindhudurg police had registered an FIR under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for negligence and other offences last month against Apte and Patil for the statue's collapse.

Chetan Patil and Jaydeep Apte had moved Bombay High Court seeking bail after a sessions court rejected their pleas.

The Opposition had alleged corruption and action was demanded. Initially, the fall was blamed on high winds on the coastal fort of Rajkot. Subsequently, the statue's designer/sculptor Jaydeep Apte and structural consultant Chetan Patil were arrested on the charges of lapses.

The Indian Navy had clarified that it had planned and executed the project which was financed by the Maharashtra government. A joint panel headed by senior Indian Navy officer Commodore Pawan Dhingra and experts from state and central Public works departments (PWDs) and IIT-Mumbai was asked to probe. The panel submitted a report to the government on Thursday. It has given reasons that led to the weakening of the structure that stood in coastal weather all through. The report will be submitted to CM Eknath Shinde.

(with PTI inputs)