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Fire & Fury Corps commander Lieutenant General Hitesh Bhalla unveils Shivaji statue at Pangong-tso, stirs controversy

Team India Sentinels 7.18pm, Sunday, December 29, 2024.

The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue at Pangong-tso. (Photo: Indian Army)

New Delhi: The Indian Army’s Fire & Fury (XIV) Corps has constructed a 9-metre-tall statue of the Maratha warrior-king Shivaji Bhonsale I, popularly known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, on the bank of the Pangong lake (Pangong-tso) in eastern Ladakh on Thursday. The lake is situated at an altitude of roughly 4,360 metres above mean sea level. The site of the statue lies in close proximity to the line of actual control (LAC) with China.

The unveiling ceremony was led by Lieutenant General Hitesh Bhalla, commander of the XIV Corps and colonel of the Maratha Light Infantry. Speaking at the statue’s unveiling ceremony, Lt Gen Bhalla emphasized how Shivaji Maharaj’s principles of courage, tactical brilliance, and fairness remain pertinent to contemporary warfare.

However, the installation has since generated considerable debate across social media platforms, especially on X. Social media users have questioned the decision to erect a statue of the Maratha warrior at Pangong-tso. Many suggested that a more fitting tribute would be a statue of Zorawar Singh – a general during the reign of the Dogra dynasty, who not only conquered Ladakh but also led campaigns into Tibet during the 19th century.

Veteran Army aviator Lieutenant Colonel Rajendra Bhaduri, while questioning the position of the statue, posted: “A statue of Gen Zorawar Singh Kahluria would have been appropriate, who conquered over 500 miles of western Tibet.”

Another user, Manu Khajuria, who identifies herself as someone interested in Dogra history and culture echoed similar sentiments. She wrote: “Have the utmost respect for Shivaji Maharaj but this is like putting the statue of Dogra General Zorawar Singh Kalhuria in Raigad Fort.”

A handle by the name History Of Rajputana questioned the Army’s decision to erect Shivaji’s statue there. It wrote: “Pangong is a strategic location, should have been adorned by a figure who holds a historical importance in that location.”

Local politician and councillor from Ladakh’s Chushul Konchok Stanzin expressed his concerns over the statute. He wrote: “It was erected without local input, and I question its relevance to our unique environment and wildlife.”

Another X user going by the handle Engineer Who posted a photo of the old Ladakh map showing the conquest route of Zorawar Singh and wrote: “Pangong Tso is the place near which Hero of 1962, Maj Shaitan Singh laid his life fighting the Chinese. It is the same place from where Zorawar Singh marched to invade Chinese Tibet.”

VatsRohit, who comments on defence and geopolitics, wrote: “Given the history of the place, [the] statue of General Zorawar Singh is most apt to be put here. It is because of his intrepidness, tactical and strategic acumen that Ladakh is today part of India.”

Defence journalist Man Aman Singh Chhina was critical of the statue. He wrote: “Since Chanakya at Pangong in the cartoonish painting was insufficient, force accretion has been resorted to by the Army leadership on the banks of the lake.”

It may be mentioned that earlier, a painting of the famous photo of Lieutenant General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi-led Pakistani military’s 1971 surrender in Bangladesh to Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Arora-led Indian and Bangladesh forces that adorned the wall of the Indian Army chief’s office was replaced by a painting showing the Pangong-tso with mythological characters and Indian forces on its bank. The move created quite an outcry in both military and civil circles.

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