Porbandar mourns its Godmother

That this barely literate woman leaves behind a trail of blood and gore,much recounted tales of brutal killings and many gang wars,did not matter. She was still Maa to too many hereand they insist a Maa is not the same as a Godmother.

The towns whos who jostled with the common folk to pay her the last tributes. For once,even political rivals such as BJPs Rananvav MLA Karshan Dula and state Youth Congress president Ramdev Modhwadia,the brother of GPCC president Arjun Modhwadia,came together. Both climbed up on the truck when it reached Sudama Chowk to console her four sons,Kandhal,Karan,Kana and Bhoja.

Industrialists and leaders of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry such as Nalin Kanani and prominent lawyers including Bharat Lakhani placed bouquets. The procession stretched over 2 km with hundreds of two- and four-wheelers in tow,until it reached her sprawling home in Bokhira,surrounded by the land she gifted to some 500 of her loyalists to settle down.

The Godmother,who was also the former MLA of Kutiyana,was once a housewife living in the shadow of her gangster husband. But after her husband was murdered in a gang feud,she led his gang from the front to first avenge his death,and then,in the1980s,to consolidate the entire underworld through a series of cruel and ruthless killings using over 100 hitmen.

Her men had around 500 criminal cases against them,she herself had over 100 cases registered against her, but most of Porbandar still believed it was the mother in her that made her the Godmother.

This showed : Thousands of locals lined the hearses route,garlands in hand and chanting prayers.

India knew her more from the Bollywood movie Godmother (played by Shabana Azmi) based on her life but in Porbandar even rival gangsters had always addressed her only as Maa. If the gang wars she commanded claimed well over 30 lives,her generosity,especially to those in need,earned her more than just a female Robin Hood image. She was the pivot of the Mehr community. She also ran the only commerce college in rural Kutiyana,the S M Commerce College.

Whatever she did,it was only to protect her family and followers, said lawyer Bharat Lakhani. Her name might have evoked terror,but no one had ever heard her raising her voice, let alone her hand. She never bothered anybody who did not bother her.

She was dreaded by those who threatened her family or business. For many others,in desperate times,she was the only hope,said Mukesh Shantilal,a shopkeeper.

Santokbens sister-in-law,Hiral Jadeja, a High Court lawyer,said: Time and circumstances made her what she became. When Sharman Munja (Santokbens husband) was killed in 1986,his elder brother Arjan couldnt take the shock and died of a heart attack three months later. Suddenly,our family was without a patriarch,her eldest son was barely 14. If she had not stepped in to take over,the family would have been fallen apart, said Hiral,who rushed back from London to Porbandar for the funeral.

She initially wanted to take her children and flee Porbander but realised she might end up losing her children too. That was why she decided to fight back to protect her family, Hiral said.

Santokbens husband was a mill worker who became a don overnight when he killed a Vagher gang leader,Devu Vagher,apparently over a labour dispute. Till then,his soft-spoken wife had been known as a deeply spiritual woman who served tea to guests at their Porbander home.

Sharman was allegedly killed by Kala Kesav gang,while contesting for the Porbandar taluka panchayat elections. Santokben contested in his place and won,and that was only the first step. It is said that one by one,she tracked down all of the 14 men involved in Sharmans killing and had them killed.

She became an MLA in 1990 without addressing a single poll rally,when the state was ruled by the late Chimanbhai Patels Janata Dal. Her active reign lasted till 96,until the BJP Government of Keshubhai Patel took over.

She was forced to shift base to Rajkot. Her sons started looking after the real estate and transport businesses.

As she struggled to keep her underworld empire intact,her family was falling apart. Her eldest son went back to the familys abandoned killing ways. And then,her second son Karan murdered her own daughter-in-law Rekha (Kandhals wife),who was also reportedly her chosen heir.

It was a personal tragedy that was unbearable for her, said Hiral.