BHOPAL: Four engineers were suspended over shifting of the statue of former union minister late Madhavrao Scindia in an “objectionable manner” in Madhya Pradesh’s Katni district, officials said.
A video of the statue being shifted with the help of an earthmoving machine, with a noose tied around the statue’s neck, emerged on social media, on Saturday evening.
According to National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) officials, construction work of NH 30 Katni-Bypass Road is underway. The statue of Madhavrao Scindia, father of union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, was already installed there and permission was obtained to move it to a new identified place to carry out the work.
“The Katni bypass of National Highway-30 is being widened as a four-lane road. During the construction of the stretch, the statue of Madhavrao Scindia, already installed at the Chaka bypass, was to be shifted by the administration after identifying another place for it. However, the construction agency removed the statue on Saturday in an objectionable manner with the help of an earthmoving machine,” an NHAI official said.
The matter was brought to the knowledge of local BJP MP and state party president VD Sharma, who while expressing his strong displeasure over the incident, termed it as an insult to the former union minister.
Subsequently strict action was taken by the administration on the instructions of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. Engineers of the construction agency concerned and NHAI were suspended.
According to the MP government’s official statement, senior engineer of the construction agency, Manoj Verma, engineer Ashish Singh Parihar, authority engineer of National Highway Authority of India, team leader Rajesh Kumar Nema and assistant bridge engineer Deepak Soni were suspended.