Sena removes Thackeray memorial from Shivaji Park

A month after Bal Thackeray was cremated at Shivaji Park here, the Shiv Sena on Tuesday dismantled the makeshift memorial that was constructed at the funeral site.

The midnight operation was carried out by the  party workers amid heavy police presence. Sena leaders, including Mumbai mayor Sunil Prabhu, legislative party leader Subhash Desai were present at the venue, supervising the work.

The dismantled memorial, including the urn containing Thackeray’s ashes, has been moved to an undisclosed location. Permanent memorial site for Thackeray will be jointly decided by the Shiv Sena, Mumbai civic body and the government.

After the memorial was removed from the current site, some party activists tried to install another memorial adjacent to the Shivaji Statue at the park. However, alert police personnel foiled the bid.

Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam, who visited the memorial site on Monday, had reiterated that the party executive president Uddhav Thackeray would keep his word given to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on dismantling the memorial.

The CM was in a fix as it was he who gave special permission to the Shiv Sena to conduct the public funeral at the park. He was warned that the party would not vacate the park, once their chief was cremated there. He, hence, gave the permission with the rider that the Sena should restore the site to its original condition and vacate the ground.  

However, the aggressive stand taken by senior leader Manohar Joshi on a memorial for Thackeray at the park, turned the situation tough for the CM. A Sena delegation, which met Chavan last week in the hope of winning their cause returned with empty hands. 

The Shiv Sena had to take a decision sooner or later, owing to the PIL pending before the High Court against the construction of the  memorial at the park. Meanwhile, the Mumbai civic body has approved a proposal to develop a small garden in Thackeray’s memory, at the park.