Maha crematorium closed as safety measure for Modi meeting

Late Monday night, Siddhesh Shete, who manages the crematorium near the venue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's public meeting at Kalyan near Mumbai got a call from a man saying a member of his family was dead.

The caller wanted to know if the crematorium was available for performing the last rites of the deceased Tuesday.

"We had to turn him back as we have orders from police to keep the crematorium closed Tuesday in view of Modi's event, just over 200 metres away," Shete told PTI.

A police official said they have directed the crematorium management to keep the facility closed for the day Tuesday owing to Modi's public rally nearby.

A board has also been placed outside the Lalchowki crematorium stating no last rites would be performed there till the rally gets over.

It asks people to perform the last rites at Bailbajar crematorium, around one and a half km from the Phadke Maidan, the venue of Modi's public event, where the prime minister is to attend the ground breaking ceremony of the Kalyan-Bhiwandi metro line.

The security measures taken in view of the event have also led to cancellation of three weddings in the nearby Wadva Hall, a civic official said.

"I have asked police to deploy their own people at the gate of crematorium to inform people of using another facility and not this one," Shete said.

It was at the same Phadke Maidan that Modi in 2014 addressed a state Assembly poll campaign meeting.