Mumbai bid adieu to Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Sunday. The Sena patraich was accorded state funeral at the historic Shivaji Park in central Mumbai. A wing of state police paid a gun salute followed by last play to Balasaheb Thackeray.
Earlier, wrapped in tricolour the mortal remains of Sena Sena patriarch were kept at a glass case for the antyadarshan.
Dignitaries including, Maharashtra Governor K Shankarnarayanan, Chief Minister of Maharshtra Prithviraj Chavan, Union Agriculture Minister and Nationalist Congress Party Chief Sharad Pawar, Senior BJP leader L. K. Advani, BJP president Nitin Gadkari, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chuhan, industrialist Anil ambani, Legendary Singer Lata Mangeshkar Actor Amitabh Bachchan paid their final tribute to the late Sena Chief. A report from AIR correspondent, the slogan ‘BAL THACKERAY AMAR RAHE’ filled Mumbai’s air as the last rites of one of Maharashtra’s greatest Marathi leader Bal Thackeray were performed on Sunday evening.
The mascot of Marathi pride was awarded state honours and was cremated at the Shivaji Park ground; a place that stands testimony to Shiv Sena’s massive rise and its popularity. There wasn’t a dry eye among the sea of humanity that had gathered at Shivaji Park to bid their final adieu.
Balasaheb’s final rites were performed by his son Uddhav Thackeray in the presence of close family members including his cousin and MNS Chief Raj Thackeray.
Earlier on Sunday lakhs of Balasaheb’s followers, the numbers unprecedented in recent memory thronged his funeral procession that began this morning from his residence 'Matsohree' in suburban Mumbai.
People from all walks of life, right from common man to politicians to industrialists to movie stars had also gathered at Shivaji Park to pay their tribute to Balasaheb. Meanwhile, the rest of Mumbai and the state wore a deserted look as all shops and other establishments remained closed.
Traffic on roads was also thin as most people chose to remain indoors. No ontoward incident was reported due to a thick police presence.
Since the voice of Mumbai’s tiger and a Hindutva mascot, Balasaheb Thackeray has been silenced; it seems that the voice of vibrant Mumbai has also fallen silent due to deep grief and mourning.
