The remains of Hindi cinema's finest stalwarts, including Madhubala, Mohammed Rafi, Naushad and Sahir Ludhianvi , have been disposed of and their tombs demolished to make space for new bodies, says a report in The Times of India.
Authorities manning the Juhu Muslim cemetery where they are interred say they were forced to take this step, and that it is in consonance with Islamic law.
The Muslim burial ground located opposite Juhu Garden was a paradise of sorts, given that luminous artistes like Rafi, Madhubala, Naseem Bano, Ludhianvi, Naushad, Ali Sardar Jafri, Khwaja Ahmed Abbas, Jan Nisar Akhtar, Talat Mahmood and Parveen Babi were interred there.
In a process that began five years ago, the trust that manages the site began to dismantle the 21 tombstones at the site and dispose of the bones and skulls without informing their families or seeking their consent.
The ground was levelled by filling in truckloads of soil three-feet high to create another layer of graves.
The latest celebrity to be buried in Juhu cemetery was Aamir Khans father Tahir Hussain on February 3. Laden with flowers , this fresh grave forms the second tier.
Islamic law or Sharia does not permit the construction of memorials to the dead, says Asgar Ali,president of the Muslim Majlis ,which manages the burial ground.
Moreover , there is an acute shortage of space since the Muslim population in the area is expanding and everyone wants to be buried in our graveyard given how clean and highprofile it is. Poet Ali Sardar Jafri lived near Malabar Hill but was brought here.
