2 years after 26/11,Mumbai mourns its dead

Ajmal Kasab,the lone surviving gunman in the carnage,has been sentenced to death by a Mumbai court.

Home Minister P Chidambaram participated in a commemoration function and also handed over the CNG filling station dealership to the family of Tukaram Ombale,the

martyred Assistant Sub-Inspector of Mumbai police.

In a rare show of courage,an unarmed Ombale had grabbed the barrel of Pakistani terrorist Kasab’s AK 47 rifle,taking bullets in the process but not letting him go.

The daring act led to the capture of Kasab that conclusively established that the terror strikes were plotted on Pakistani soil,Chidambaram said.

The gunmen attacked ordinary commuters CST train station,targeted the rich and famous at two luxury hotels–Taj and Oberoi Trident–,killed tourists at the popular Leopold cafe,overwhelmed the local police force and took over a Jewish centre at Nariman House. The attackers arrived by sea on the evening of November 26 two years back.

Earlier in the day,accompanied by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and his deputy Ajit Pawar,Chidambaram paid homage to the 18 security personnel who died in the line of duty during the attacks by placing wreaths at the memorial at police gymkhana. He also inquired about the wellbeing of the families of slain policemen present at the memorial.

The leaders also paid homage at a memorial erected at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus where over 50 people had been killed during the carnage.

Chief Minister Chavan took salute from the smartly turned out contingents of state’s anti-terror force—Force One,Quick Response Teams (QRT) and Mumbai police at a parade on the Marine Drive that began from hotel Trident,one of the sites of the terror attack.

Hundreds of students held a 1.3 Km-long banner banner that read “The Great Wall of Mumbai”,to send a signal that the city remained defiant in the face of the attack.

Families of the victims held a candlelight vigil in the evening at the Gateway of India where a multi-faith meeting was also organised.

K Unnikrishnan,father of the NSG commando Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan who died fighting terrorists during the attack at Taj Hotel,led a peace march from Nariman Point to Gateway of India during which candles were lit and white balloons released.

Unnikrishnan reached hre after starting his month-long cycle journey from India Gate in Delhi to Gateway of India with an aim to remind the country of the sacrifice of the soldiers. He was accompanied by his wife Dhanalakshmi and another cyclist Hiralal Yadav.

Both Taj and Oberoi-Trident kept the commemoration a low-key affair holding small prayer meetings.