26/11 13th anniv: Mumbai pays homage to bravehearts, victims
Darpan News Desk IANS, 26 Nov, 2021 01:01 PM
Mumbai, Nov 26 (IANS) Mumbai on Friday remembered the bravehearts and victims felled by bullets and others who saved lives on the 13th anniversary of the dastardly terrror strikes by ten Pakistani terrorists who paralysed the city on November 26-29 2008.
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari led the state by solemnly laying wreaths at the Martyrs' Memorial erected inside the Mumbai Police Commissionerate premises near Crawford Market in south Mumbai.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, currently convalescing, saluted those who lost their lives during the terror strikes and expressed his gratitude to those who fought the terrorists, terming the attack "a cowardly act".
He recalled the services of the police and security forces and the people of Mumbai for warding off the assault on the country's commercial capital and recovering from its effects.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Home Minsiter Dilip Walse-Patil, Tourism Minister, Director-General of Police Sanjay Pandey, Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale and other dignitaries also paid their respects at the martyrs' memorial.
A large number of police personnel turned up to pay homage to their colleagues who lost their lives while fighting the terrorists who struck at key locations in south Mumbai, with special memories for Tukaram G. Omble who sacrificed his life while pinning down Ajmal Amir Kasab, the sole terrorist nabbed alive in the early hours of November 27, 2008.
The still-grieving family members, relatives of the martyrs and several bravehearts, as also ordinary people paid homage to the departed souls with folded hands, bowed heads, lighting candles, offering flowers or wreaths, at the Martyrs' Memorial and other locations in the city.
They included the widows, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers or sisters, who stepped upto the memorial and offered their own personal tributes with flowers or tears for their departed near and beloved ones.
Similar in memoriams were held at some of the worst-hit targets like the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Hotel Taj Mahal Palace, Hotel Oberoi, the Chabad House, the Cama Hospital, and the Leopold Cafe, which bore the brunt of attackers leaving around 175 dead and over 300 injured.
The traditional and social media featured several remembrance ads, glowing and touching tributes and messages of the 60-hours that shook the world before the security forces won over the terrorists - eliminating 9 and taking one (Kasab) alive - to face the Indian law in an unprecedented 'open trial'.
The Deputy Chief Minister, who is also holding the Health portfolio, said 2.16 lakh people got vaccinated on Tuesday. Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Hoshiarpur and Patiala were the top five districts in immunisation.
The meeting lasted over half an hour and it is understood that Mishra might have made his position clear in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. Earlier, he went to his office in the North Block and stayed there for a while.
NCP national spokesperson and Maharashtra Minorities Affairs Minister Nawab Malik slammed the "fraud" NCB operations,in which BJP leader Manish Bhanushali and "private detective" Kiran P. Gosavi were seen dragging out the accused. including superstar Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan and Arbaaz Merchant.
In a statement here, he said the worst has started coming true as the Taliban have started showing their true colours by way of complete intolerance towards the minorities leading to their intimidation and destruction of their religious places.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and other leaders met the family of deceased farmer Lovepreet at the Chaukhada farm in Palia at around 9 p.m. on Wednesday. They later met the family of journalist Raman Kashyap, who was also killed in violence.
9 persons, including four farmers, were killed in the violence that had erupted during a farmers' protest in Lakhimpur Kheri. A bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana and comprising justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli will hear the matter on Thursday. The matter has been listed as 'violence in Lakhimpur Kheri (UP) leading to loss of life'.
