India, Nov. 21 -- Nearly a week after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Amit Thackeray kicked up a row in Navi Mumbai by forcibly unveiling a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj allegedly awaiting inauguration for months, the statue will be formally inaugurated on Friday.

Deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde will inaugurate the statue alongside BJP minister and Airoli MLA Ganesh Naik at 5pm on Friday, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) said in a media statement issued on Thursday evening. Shinde and Naik will also inaugurate a new microbiology laboratory at MeenaTai Thackeray Hospital in Nerul during the occasion, the statement noted.

Amit Thackeray, son of MNS chief Raj Thackeray, had stormed the st...