By TwoCircles.net staff reporter,
Mumbai: Tension prevailed in Navi Mumbai on March 13 when a contingent of City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) tried to demolish three shrines – two dargahs (tombs) and a temple.
According to media reports, on Thursday afternoon around 500 people including police officers, lady constables, jawans of State Reserve Police Force and personnel of Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, demolished the shade of Balishah Baba Dargah near Palm Beach Road in Nerul in Navi Mumbai and some encroachments around it.
An adjoining Shiv Temple also fell prey to the drive carried out by the office of the Controller of Unauthorized Constructions (CUC), CIDCO, under the directives of additional collector Subhash Bange, chief CUC, CIDCO officials Dilip Gangurage and Nitin Kamble etc.
A CIDCO officer is believed to have said that only illegal encroachments in the name of dargah related activities have been removed. He added the main place of dargah will remain safe.
It is to be noted that after 26/11 Mumbai terror attack the Shiv Sena mouthpiece ‘Samna’ had demanded in its December 24, 2008 edition from the Navy and coast guard officers that Balishah Baba Dargah be removed as it might cause disturbance in coastal area security.
The contingent had another ‘Amirbaba Dargah’ at sector 28 in its list. But due to the strong protest from the local Muslims and after promise from the trustees to remove encroachments by themselves within 10 days, the shrine was spared.
It is said that lone Muslim corporator of the region Abdul Jabbar Khan has assured Muslims of a workable solution through discussion among them, the city management and the CIDCO. But the Muslims are in anxiety.
Interestingly the trustees of both the dargahs have long been local Muslims. However, they could not get them registered.