- Monday, March 10, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
The politics of the western Indian state of Maharashtra has witnessed a fresh row erupting over allegations that the grave of Yakub Memon, convicted in the 1993 serial blasts in state capital Mumbai, was been beautified and turned into a ‘mazar’ or shrine. The state government has ordered a probe into the matter.
The home department of Maharashtra has asked the Mumbai Police to carry out a detailed probe into the matter and submit a report.
The matter came to the fore after Ram Kadam, a state legislator from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) representing Ghatkopar East in Maharashtra assembly, shared picture of the grave on social media and targeted former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray saying the grave was made into a shrine during his tenure.
Thackeray’s tenure ended in July when his Shiv Sena imploded and a splinter group led by current chief minister Eknath Shinde formed a new government backed by the BJP.
“Uddhav Thackeray was the Chief Minister. During his tenure, the grave of dreaded terrorist Yakub Memon, who carried out bombings in Mumbai in 1993, was turned into a mazaar. Is this his love for Mumbai, his devotion to the country?” Kadam tweeted in Hindi.
उधव ठाकरे मुख्यमंत्री थे .उस क़ाल में मुंबई में पाकिस्तान के इशारे पर 1993 में बंबकांड करने वाला ख़ूँख़ार आतनवादी याकूब मेमन की कबर मझार में तब्दील हो गयी .
यही है इनका मुंबई से प्यार , यही इनकी देश भक्ती ?उधव ठाकरे समेत शरद पवार तथा राहुल गांधी माफ़ी माँगे मुंबई की जनता की pic.twitter.com/TAQNhBb36G
— Ram Kadam (@ramkadam) September 7, 2022
इस कुकर्मको अनदेखा करनेके लिए ,,, अब पेंग्विन सेना इसका जवाब दे ,,
— Ram Kadam (@ramkadam) September 7, 2022
Before-and-after pictures of the grave showed that a marble wall has replaced the concrete, run-down wall earlier.
याकूब मेमन
कबर befor and after ,
Its because of Udhav‘s blessings ? Or his mumbai love ? pic.twitter.com/JLV36Ng7TP
— Ram Kadam (@ramkadam) September 7, 2022
The BJP leader sought apology from not only Thackeray but also Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi since the three parties were part of the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (Maharashtra Development Front) government which took charge in November 2019.
Memon was hanged in Nagpur Central Jail in July 2015. His body was handed over to his family and buried at a graveyard in Mumbai’s Marine Lines area.
Shoaib Khatib, chairperson of the graveyard committee, however, denied that any shrine had come up near Memon’s grave, NDTV reported.
“Not only Yakub Memon, but the graves of several from his family are located here. Earth was slipping off, so we built an enclosure wall,” he told the media.
While he admitted that lights had been put up at the spot, they were taken down following the row.
“Yakub Memon is a traitor and there is no sympathy for him,” he said.
