The accused who damaged the statue of former Maharaja of Punjab Ranjit Singh installed in the royal fort of Lahore was arrested and legal action was initiated against him.

The video of the accused vandalizing the statue of Ranjit Singh went viral on social media on August 17, after which Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore Ghulam Mehmood Dogar took notice of the incident and ordered the arrest of the accused.

After the notice of CCPO Ghulam Mehmood Dogar, police arrested accused Rizwan.

Confirming the arrest of the accused, the CCPO said that legal action had been initiated against the accused for damaging the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

According to police, the accused smashed the statue in the royal fort with a hammer and damaged it.

Dr Shahbaz Gul, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, also tweeted after the statue of the former ruler of Punjab was smashed and said that the accused would be arrested and legal action would be taken against him.

He also termed the person who broke the statute as mentally ill.

شاھی قلعہ لاھور پر لگے مہاراجہ رنجیت سنگھ کے مجسمہ کو توڑ کر کیا پیغام دینا چاھتا ھے یہ نوجوان
پہر تو ہمیں جھنڈہ سے سفید رنگ بھی نکال دینا چاھئے۔ pic.twitter.com/sW0hDYFGRh

— کرانچی کا بھیا( MPA) (@iamlyari) August 17, 2021

Even before the incident, the statue of Ranjit Singh was smashed in 2019.

Also in August 2019, two accused attacked and broke the statue of Ranjit Singh with hammers in the presence of others in the royal fort.

A statue of Ranjit Singh has been erected near his grave. The statue of Raja Ranjit Singh was unveiled at Mai Jindan Haveli of the Royal Fort on June 27, 2019, on the occasion of his 180th death anniversary.

This bronze statue of the Maharaja, dressed in traditional Sikh attire on horseback and holding a sword in his hand, is 9 feet high.