Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024 | Politics over 'Shivaji' trails like a shadow

The erection of statues has become the norm in Indian politics over the years as a symbol of loyalty to the people of the region. For Maharashtra, the fall of the SHivaji statute and the unveiling of new ones remain a core issue at least till the polls are concluded.

Maharashtra is gearing up for another assembly election on November 20, following the announcement by the Election Commission of India. The state will vote for the 288 assembly seats in single-phase and counting will take place on November 23.

While the region has always been embroiled in political storms, with or without polls, every election in Maharashtra revolves around Maharaj Shivaji. And, this time it is not any different, considering the veneration accorded to the historic ruler by every Marathi.

The King carved a space in the Deccan and became a revered figure in the region, and now any slight to his memory cannot be fathomed.

We have seen that in previous elections, and will most likely keep seeing it for some time to come.

This election the issues dominating the region find a connection with Maharaj Shivaji and it is unsurprising that with the collapse of the statue, and the events unfolding after this, the region has been shaken up once again with politics revolving around 'Shivaji'.

Statue Collapse and the many events

The collapse of the 35-foot statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj with a sword in his hand in Malvan, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, has been at the centre of much political slugfest in the poll-bound state.

The statue, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rajkot Fort in Malvan tehsil of Sindhu durg to coincide with the Navy Day celebrations on December 4 last year, was one of the many statues of Shivaji in Maharashtra.

Given Maharashtra's deep reverence for Shivaji, when the statue came down crashing, irrespective of the pouring rains and gusty winds in the state in August this year, every political party clutched onto the issue, knowing that the ruling Shinde-led Mahayuti government would face flak over this.

From holding “jode mara” campaign against the Eknath Shinde government to declaring a bandh over the issue, the opposition led by Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar and other leaders, pounced on the Mahayuti alliance and the BJP at the centre, raising several allegations.

Sensing the danger in the opposition holding onto the incident and making it a lead issue in the fast-approaching assembly elections in the state, PM Modi apologised to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and those hurt by the collapse of the warrior king’s statue in the coastal Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra.

“Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name or a king. For us, he is our deity. Today, I bow my head at his feet and apologise to my deity,” Modi had said, after laying the foundation stone of the Rs 76,000 crore Vadhvan Port project in Maharashtra’s Palghar district.

But the apology and the promise of a probe by the Shinde-led government has not deterred the opposition from seeking to settle scores over the issue.

Shivaji in Maharashtra

To understand Maharashtra, it is important to understand how King Shivaji is pivotal to the politics in the state. The King is revered for his bravery and taking on the might of the Adilshahi of Bijapur and the Mughals, as his legacy expanded beyond the Maratha region.

Shivaji is also credited for changing the course of the country. Historians and books have pointed to the many faces of King Shivaji, giving every political party a chance to spin it to suit their ideology - as the man who fought the Islamic kings and the Mughals, the protector of cows and communities, to the one who cared for the welfare of peasants - the stories of Maharaj Shivaji are aplenty.

The building of new statues

Maharashtra is home to hundreds of statues of Shivaji and that hasn't stopped political parties from announcing more that will be built.

That is why a Shivaji Maharaj memorial proposed to be built in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Mumbai by the then Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance government in 2004 is still an election issue in the state.

Though the proposal has not seen much progress since then, parties rake it up as an issue ahead of polls there. The proposal was carried forward by the successive governments of Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena, the MVA administration of now-Shiv Sena (UBT)-Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (SP), and the Shiv Sena, BJP-NCP rule. In 2016, Modi performed bhoomi pujan (land worship) for a memorial to Maharashtra icon Chhatrapati Shivaji in the Arabian Sea.

Crores have been spent on this project, which has not seen the light of day yet. According to a PTI report, the construction of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue in Arabian Sea off Mumbai coast would cost the exchequer Rs 3643.78 crore and construction of all aspects of the project was to be over by 2022-23. This was in 2018!

Fast forward to 2024, as Maharashtra nears election, on October 6, Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, a Shivaji descendent, who is also at the helm of his own political outfit ‘Maharashtra Swarajya Paksh’, took a boat ride to this site where PM Modi performed jal pooja eight years ago to inspect the progress.

"On 24 December 2016, PM Modi performed the jal-poojan but it (the Shivaji Maharaj statue) has not seen the light of day. There is a government (of the BJP) in the Centre and Maharashtra but still they have failed," Raje said after inspecting the site.

But that is not the only Shivaji memorial that is being promised. There are several, including Uddhav Thackeray's promise of building a temple of Shivaji in every district if voted to power. Rahul Gandhi, on October 4, unveiled the statue of renowned Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at Kasaba Bawada in Kolhapur. The Maharashtra government has issued a tender for the construction of a new 60-foot-tall statue there, nearly twice the size of the previous one.

The erection of statues has become the norm in Indian politics over the years as a symbol of loyalty to the people of the region. For Maharashtra, the fall of statutes and the unveiling of new statues of Shivaji remain a core issue at least till the polls are concluded.

Shivaji's 'bagh-nakh' comes home

Another factor that could be on people's minds this election in Maharashtra is the return of the 17th century ‘Tiger Claw’ weapon, popularly known as “bagh Nakh”, believed to have belonged to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, to its homeland.

The road for the return of the claw was paved after the state government and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London signed a MoU for the return of the weapon of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to India for a period of three years.

The “bagh Nakh” was brought to India from London on July 13. According to historians, during a protracted military engagement in 1659, the legendary Maratha leader held the metal claws, or bagh nakh, concealed in his hand and is said to have disembowelled his opponent Afzal Khan – the commander of the opposing Bijapur army. It is believed, though unverified, that the set of claws then came into the possession of James Grant Duff, an officer of the East India Company who was appointed Resident or political agent of the Satara state in 1818 and gifted to the V and A by a descendant. The claw is now displayed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Sangrahalay (museum) in Satara.

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