india

Updated: Feb 20, 2019 21:40 IST

Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani in the Gujarat legislative assembly was suspended for a day on Wednesday from ongoing budget session his comments on the Statue of Unity.

Congressman Dhanani described the Statue of Unity as one made from scrap “where Sardar Patel has been caged”, triggering angry response from the ruling BJP. Along with many BJP legislators, chief minister Vijay Rupani also demanded Dhanani to withdraw his statement which he refused.

Later with the majority vote, the BJP got him suspended from the house for a day. He would be able to attend the assembly only for a day of remaining two days.

“Sardar Patel has been caged in the statue made from scrap,” Dhanani remarked came during question hour. The 182-meter tall structure at Kevadiya in central Gujarat, it is the tallest statue in the world and fast becoming a major tourists attraction since its inauguration in October 2018.

Later Dhanani told media, “I borrowed words only from official website of the Statue of Unity.”

The Congress claimed that Dhanani’s suspension was a ploy by the BJP not to face questions.

“The BJP anyhow wanted our MLAs to miss the session so that they do not have to face question over real issues and problems,” senior Congress legislator Vikram Madam said.

Energy Minister Saurabh Patel refuted Dhanani’s claim and said the website mentioned no such thing.

“The website says the agriculture tools from across India were collected, along with soil and water. The iron tools were melted and used in the project. Nowhere the site says that statue was built from scrap,” the minister said.

The incident has given the BJP a vantage point ahead of coming general elections against the Congress when in past two elections-2015 local body elections and 2017 assembly elections - influential Patels or Patidars were seen drifting away from it in the backdrop of agitation for the OBC quota.

The BJP has said that protest against Dhanani, who is also a Patidar, will be organized across the state.

The website the statueofunity.in says: The Loha Campaign was a unique initiative at the rural level, in which various social engagement organizations and volunteers worked to collect used iron farming implements from the villages of the country for use in the construction of the Statue of Unity.