MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Friday granted bail to Jaydeep Apte, the sculptor who made the 28-feet statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Malvan that collapsed in August last year. A single bench of Justice N R Borkar granted Apte bail on a personal bond of Rs 25,000.
Apte, in his plea filed through advocate Ganesh Sovani, had sought bail claiming that the statue fell because of gusty winds. The statue, which was inaugurated on December 4, 2023 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rajkot Fort in Malvan, collapsed on August 26 last year. It was erected on a 12-feet pedestal at a cost of Rs 2.44 crore.
Advocate Sovani submitted that no one was injured in the incident and that further custody of Apte was not warranted. An FIR was lodged on the complaint of state Public Works Department (PWD) personnel under various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act. Apte, proprietor of M/s Artistry, said he made the bronze statue on the basis of the work order issued on September 8, 2023 by the Naval Dockyard. His plea contended that the Naval Dockyard authority never complained of any artistic deficiency or shortcomings.
His plea pointed out that the FIR was registered within nine hours of the incident on the complaint of PWD personnel who have no technical expertise in metallurgy. Sovani also told court co-accused Chetan Patil was granted bail in November last year.