Brigade asks Sena-BJP to stop agitation

“The Shiv Sena,BJP and MNS are trying to give a communal tone to the issue. We have been demanding the removal of the statue in a democratic way and it is based on the findings of the state government-appointed committee which said Konddeo was not the teacher of Shivaji,” said Vikas Pasalkar,city chief of Sambhaji Brigade,at a press conference today.

“The Brigade’s demand for removal of the statue came up after the James Laine book was published in 2004. The statues of Konddeo,Shivaji and Jijamata,mother of Maratha warrior,together at Lal Mahal sent a wrong message and misinterpreted history. Thefore,it was neccessary to remove the statue of Konddeo,” Pasalkar said.

“The saffron alliance should not stretch the issue further or it will affect communal harmony,” he said,adding,the state government too had communicated to the PMC in 2006 to take a decision at the local level.

“We thank the elected representatives who voted in favour of removal of the statue,” he said,adding that the controversy over Konddeo not being the teacher of Shivaji existed for 150 years and was not a new one.

The Sambhaji Brigade demanded that the statue of Shahajiraje be installed at the earliest or they will launch a campaign for it. Pasalkar condemned the saffron alliance for damaging public property during the bandh.

He clarified that the organisation has nothing to do with NCP as alleged by the saffron combine.

NCP spokesperson Ankush Kakade said the saffron alliance was unnccessarily making an issue that the statue was deliberately removed past midnight. “The Shiv Sena-BJP had removed the bust of Ram Ganesh Gadkari from Shivaji Park in Mumbai at midnight to replace it with that of Meenatai Thackeray,wife of Sena chief Bal Thackeray,in 1996. Thefore,they should not protest against the removal of the statue in wee hours,” he added.