CM couldn't spare even 15 minutes to unveil Swami Ramanand Tirtha's statue: Oppn targets Fadnavis

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Sep 17 (PTI) Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve on Wednesday sought to know why Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis could not spare time to unveil the statue of Swami Ramanand Tirtha, a key leader of the Marathwada liberation movement, despite being in the city for an event.

He claimed that more than half a dozen letters were sent to the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) for the unveiling of the statue without any positive response from the CM so far.

Swami Ramanand Tirtha (1903-1972) led the Marathwada liberation struggle during the reign of Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of Hyderabad. His original name was Vyenkatesh Bhagvanrao Khedgikar.

The Swami Ramanand Teerth Research Institute said it has written four letters seeking CM Fadnavis' time since February this year for the unveiling of the statue.

CM Fadnavis was in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar since Tuesday night and attended the Marathwada Mukti Din programme in Siddharth Garden on Wednesday morning before visiting Phulambri in the district and Beed.

September 17 marks the anniversary of Marathwada's integration with India and the annexation of Hyderabad state, which was under the Nizam rule, into the Union of India.

"The work on this statue was completed around a year back in October of 2024. It was pursued by the Swami Ramanand Teerth Research Institute and was made by the municipal corporation," an office-bearer of the institute said.

"We sent at least four letters since February 2025, seeking CM's time to unveil the statue of Swami Ramanand Tirtha. But we did not get any reply from the CMO despite following all the protocols for seeking appointment. As a result we have paid tribute to the swami by keeping his photo frame just below the statue," secretary of the institute, Sarang Takalkar, told PTI.

A proposal for the statue was first sanctioned by the local civic body in 2017, but after its time-frame got over, a fresh proposal was sent to it again, which was re-sanctioned immediately, he said.

"October 3 is celebrated as the birth anniversary of Swami Ramanand Tirtha, and we expect that his statue will be unveiled next month," he said.

In a post on X, Ambadas Danve said, "...It seems the government and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis are still unaware of Swami Ramanand Tirtha's remarkable contribution in liberating Nizam's land and making it a part of our soil!...The statue of Swami Ramanand Tirtha, who was at the forefront of the Marathwada Liberation Struggle, had been awaiting inauguration by the CM since October 2024." "More than half a dozen letters have been written to the CMO requesting his time. But it is regrettable that they did not even have 15 minutes for the unveiling of this statue," the Sena (UBT) leader said. PTI AW NP