Statue still there, but mayor rajpal vanishes

Sambhaji Brigade activists say Mayor slipped out of office to avoid meeting them

Sambhaji Brigade activists say Mayor slipped out of office to avoid meeting them

Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal was compelled to call for additional security when Sambhaji Brigade workers tried to
storm the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) office yesterday afternoon. When the activists understood they would not be able to force their way in, they resigned themselves to standing outside and demanding a meeting with the Mayor. But Rajpal was no longer in his office by then.

Activists of the Sambhaji Brigade arrived at the PMC to press for the removal of the Dadoji Konddev statue from the Lal Mahal.

The issue has been a contentious one for some years now, with the Sambhaji Brigade saying Konddeo, a Brahmin, was not the guru of the Maratha Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

The outfit's morcha was intercepted by the police at the PMC gates and there was heavy bandobast on the premises, with many policemen deployed right outside the Mayor's cabin.u00a0

Festering issue
Earlier, on August 25, activists of the Sambhaji Brigade had protested outside the PMC building, and Rajpal had promised to remove the Konddeo statue.
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Later, leaders of all parties decided to set up an expert committee to assess the historic reality of Konddeo. A formal decision is to be taken in the General Body meeting towards the end of this month.

Activists of the outfit yesterday criticised Rajpal and Municipal Commissioner Mahesh Zagade for not meeting them to discuss the issue. They said the Mayor disappeared after he realised that the activists were protesting outside his office.

"The Mayor shouldn't have avoided us when a meeting was scheduled for Thursday. The Mayor is just making false promises," said Sanotsh Shinde, general secretary, Sambhaji Brigade.

Activists threatened to remove the Konddeo statue if the PMC did not take a stand on the issue soon.
"We will remove the statue ourselves," said Shinde.

Mayor explains
When MiD DAY contacted Rajpal, he said he had to rush out because of pressing personal concerns.

"I had to rush for a friend's funeral at Rahu village in the district and am not sure when I will return," he said on the phone. "We've promised Sambhaji Brigade we will be forming an expert committee on the issue and the decision will be taken on October 27 in the General Body meeting."

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