VALPOI: Sattari Taluka’s Shiv Premi held a meeting on Friday and decided to postpone the ‘Sattari Bandh’ in view of the Holi festival.
“We will, however, hold a mega rally tomorrow in the town starting at 9.30 am from Valpoi new KTC bus stand,” said Gaurish Gawas, President of Sattari Taluka Shiv Premi Association.
Over 100 Shiv Premi were present for the meeting held at Sateri Temple hall in Velus village.
Meanwhile, Shivjayanti Utsav Committee held a press conference and cleared their stand on the bandh saying “they want peace in Valpoi and they don’t support the bandh.”
Secretary of Shivjayanti Utsav Committee Uday Sawant rubbished the claim made by group of Shiv Premi of their involvement in removing the Shivaji Maharaj statue from Hathwada junction and said it’s the Government Administration’s decision to remove the statue. “There is no involvement of Shivjayanti Utsav Committee to remove the statue. There was a long pending demand of people to build a huge statue of Shivaji Maharaj in Valpoi so with the support of our Health Minister Vishwajit Rane we mounted it in Valpoi Municipal Garden last month,” Sawant said.
Vinod Shinde, a member of Shivjayanti Utsav Committee, said “Our committee does not support tomorrow’s bandh which is called by few people. We want to maintain peace and communal harmony in Valpoi. We had taken members of all communities together and taken a unanimous decision to build a Shivaji statue in the VMC garden. One member had suggested that there should be only one statue in VMC garden and we should remove the statue placed at Hathwada Junction. Our committee decided not to interfere in Hathwada junction statue issue and let the Government administration decide on it.”
“There is the need of bringing the teaching of Shivaji Maharaj in our life. The huge statue which we plan in VMC garden is of every community. I request the Shiv Premi to maintain peace and communal harmony in our Sattari taluka,” said Zilla Parishad member Fati Gaonkar.
Shopkeepers from Valpoi Market had given a memorandum to Valpoi PI Shivram Vaigankar stating that they will not support the bandh if they get a proper security to run their business.
