BJP says Yakub Memon grave ‘beautified’, attacks Uddhav

MUMBAI: A war of words broke out on Thursday between Shiv Sena and BJP over the alleged beautification of 1993 blast convict Yakub Memon’s grave at Bada Qabrastan in Marine Lines. BJP attacked Sena, alleging the grave was “beautified” and attempts were made to turn it into a shrine of sorts during the Sena-led government’s tenure.
BJP sought former chief minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray’s apology over the alleged beautification. However, Sena leaders maintained that the party and the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government had nothing to do with the alleged beautification since the cemetery was privately owned.
After the controversy escalated, the LT Marg police visited Bada Qabrastan on Thursday, and the Qabrastan authorities in the presence of police removed the LED lights, said a senior police official. The LED lights were installed on the occasion of Shab-e-Baraat, a few months ago.
Memon was buried on July 30, 2015, after he was executed in Nagpur central prison for playing an active role in the blasts conspiracy. He was the younger brother of one of the 1993 blast masterminds, Tiger Memon.
Denying that Memon’s grave was “beautified”, Shoeb Khatib, president of Juma Masjid of Bombay Trust, which manages both Juma Masjid near Crawford Market and the Bada Qabrastan, said that LED lights were put up as part of Shabe-Baraat when Muslims visit graveyards to pray for thedead. “There are 14 graves in the section where Yakub Memon is buried. No special treatment has been given to his grave,” said Khatib.
Newly-appointed state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule demanded that Uddhav apologise to the people of Mumbai and the state for beautification of the grave of a person responsible for killing 250 people. Returning BJP’s salvo, Shiv Sena leader and former minister Aaditya Thackeray asked: “Why was Yakub Memon not buried in the sea like Osama bin Laden? Whose government was it when Memon was buried? It is necessary to see what the true situation is while making accusations. ”
Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Ajit Pawar backed Sena, claiming the issue was being raked up to divert the attention of people from unemployment and inflation.