BJP demands Lata Mangeshkar memorial at Shivaji Park, Congress backs it
Nana Patole, President, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), said that the memorial at Shivaji Park should be up to “international standards.”
Mumbai: A day after legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar’s demise, political parties have demanded that a memorial be built at Shivaji Park, where she was cremated on Sunday. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress are on the same page in this matter, with the latter backing the saffron party’s demand.
However, Shiv Sena, the senior partner in the ruling Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, has said that there was no need for any such demand and the decision over the memorial will be taken by the state and Union government.
In a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, BJP MLA Ram Kadam said that a memorial should be erected at Shivaji Park. “On behalf of her countless followers and music lovers, I would like to request you for a memorial at the place at the Shivaji Park ground where she was cremated. Honouring the demand from the people, the memorial should be erected immediately as a sign of inspiration for the entire globe,” Kadam wrote.
Backing the demand, Nana Patole, President, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), said that the memorial at Shivaji Park should be up to “international standards.”
Asked about the absence of senior Congress leaders at Mangeshkar’s funeral, Patole said that while ministers Balasaheb Thorat, Ashok Chavan and Amit Deshmukh had tested positive for Covid-19, he (Patole) could not make it due to a bereavement in his family. Besides, ministers Aslam Shaikh and Varsha Gaikwad were out of Mumbai.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said that Lata Mangeshkar deserves a memorial of international stature but no politics should be played over it. “There is no need of any such demand. It is not easy to construct a memorial of the immortal artist who will remain within us till the end of the universe. The memorial should be built of international standards and the state and union governments will think over it jointly. She was an invaluable treasure of the country,” he said.
Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi also said that there should not be any politics over the matter when the entire nation was grieving the death of the singer.