Margao: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday credited Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj with saving the dharma, culture, and temples of the state from destruction, saying it was solely due to the two Maratha rulers that the state’s religious and cultural heritage survived the Portuguese colonial era.Sawant was speaking after unveiling a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji in Sanguem, in the presence of several religious and political leaders.He said that over 1,000 temples in Goa were destroyed by the Portuguese, and that Shivaji’s order to reconstruct the Shree Saptakoteshwar temple at Narve proved to be a turning point. According to Sawant, the rebuilding of the temple brought the wave of temple destruction to a halt and also ended religious conversions, thereby securing the protection of Goa’s dharma, temples, and ‘sanskriti’.Sawant said the statue in Sanguem was one of its kind in Goa and would serve as a lasting reminder of the Maratha rulers’ role in safeguarding the state’s heritage. “It will remind generations for the next 500 years about the role of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in the protection of our dharma,” he said.
