Indian political leader Bal Thackeray died yesterday at 3.30pm local time in Mumbai. His funeral ceremony has drawn more than 2.5 Million people, and might reach 4 Million people by Sunset today. This makes his funeral procession the biggest ever in modern India, and one of the largest in the whole world. Bal Thackeray was one of the most powerful leaders in India and the founder of the popular political group "Shiv Sena". You can read more about this great leader on..... http://www.domainenvironment.com/blog/bal-thackeray/ Please let me know which other funerals you have heard off or know about that have attracted that many people.
With all due respects I have never heard of this guy. India has a population of around 1,241,491,960 and is listed as the 3rd-4th richest country in the world by the IMF, World Bank and CIA World Fact Book. With all the suffering and squalor the Indian people have to endure - I would think that 90%+ are very poor and deprived of decent living accommodation, adequate food and health care, jobs, etc. etc. and with India being such a rich nation, it seems meaningless to have Leaders and politicians at all - they do damn all with the countries wealth and certainly do not help their people. It is remarkable that anybody bothered to turn up at all for this guy`s funeral, since neither he or any other polititian has done anything for the Indian people. Other funerals with a huge turn-out ? Heaps of them, JFK - a guy who actually DID great things for his country - is just one and there are plenty more.
@ Wonay So what is your point? that he is great because millions attended his funeral or that he was a big political wig or because he with his coterie terrorized people to call the city Mumbai?
@ Alevoor Just wanted to know if there have been any other funerals in the last few decades where such a large audience was present for the funeral.
John bull answered your question. I heard annadurai's funeral procession was thronged by 1.5 million people long ago. You need to google this is you are interested.
Honestly, outside of Shivsena no one cares about Thakarey. 2.5 million attended his funeral because they had nothing better to do that day. City was brought to a halt anyway. Not out of respect, but out of fear. I'm, however, enraged by the arrest of two innocent girls who questioned this "bandh". That was an act of fascism.
For some people he was god and for some people he was no one.But he was one person whom can be called the tiger of mumbai.
He instilled fear in people minds by dividing them on regional basis.His popularity can not be gauged by the attendance in his funeral.He was not known outside Mumbai for good reasons
It's estimated that 151600 people die each day, about 2 people each second. He had money and he wasn't a good politician, so who really cares. There are other people worth the thought and time. Saying that, spending all the time thinking about the sad and senseless deaths would be depressing.