From Saddam-Laden to Afzal-Kasab… the last traces of the ‘villains’ do not vanish just like that!

Saddam Hussein, Afzal Guru, Osama bin Laden, Ajmal Kasab.

Governments do not want the graves or final places of such persons to become a source of inspiration for extremist groups and extremist ideas. Because if this happens, some elements may start gathering at that place when the time and situation is favorable, this can create a law and order problem for the government.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has made an important statement amidst the demand to remove the grave of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb from Khuldabad in Maharashtra. He said on Tuesday that even America did not allow Osama bin Laden to be buried on its land and his body was thrown into the sea to avoid any glorification.
Eknath Shinde said who is Aurangzeb? Why should we allow his glorification in our state? He is a blot on our history.

It is worth noting that Aurangzeb was an influential ruler of the Mughal Sultanate. He died in Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. And now his grave is in Khuldabad, 130 km away from Ahmednagar.

While people of Hindu organizations are demanding to remove the grave of Aurangzeb from Khuldabad, the Muslim community considers him a brave king of the Mughal Sultanate. Calling him an influential king, it opposes this move.

Amidst this debate going on in Maharashtra, let us understand the recent history and know how the final address of the villains becomes anonymous.

In fact, in the modern world, governments, agencies and institutions do not want to keep any permanent identity of those people whom the society and court have declared as enemies.

For America, Iraq’s ruler Saddam Hussein was such a character. Osama bin Laden, the terrorist who carried out the 9/11 attack, was a villain for America and other countries of the civilized world. On the other hand, Afzal Guru, the terrorist who attacked the Indian Parliament, and Ajmal Kasab, the culprit of the 26/11 Mumbai attack, are villains for many countries of the world including 140 crore Indians.

What happened to Saddam Hussein’s body after he was hanged?

Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was hanged by America on 30 December 2006. After this, his body was sent to Baghdad for burial.

Saddam was buried on 31 December 2006 in Al-Auja, which is in his ancestral village a few kilometers away from Tikrit. The graves of his two sons Uday and Qusay were also here.

Initially, this grave became a memorial for his supporters. Every year on 28 April, people used to gather there and his pictures and posters were put up on the grave.

But after ISIS took control of Iraq in 2014, Saddam’s grave came under threat. Meanwhile, some leaders of Saddam’s tribe claim that they made the grave disappear from there and took it to a secret place so that ISIS does not destroy it. It is not clear where Saddam Hussein’s grave is right now. A fighter who has worked for Saddam claims that Saddam’s exiled daughter, who lives in Jordan, came to Iraq in her private jet and took her father’s ‘remains’ when she saw an opportunity. She claims that she will bring her father’s remains back when the situation in Iraq improves.

Laden’s body was thrown into the sea

America did not make the same mistake as Saddam Hussein in disposing of the body of its biggest enemy, Osama bin Laden.

Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed by US Navy Seals in an operation in Abbottabad, Pakistan on May 2, 2011.

After killing Laden, the US Army took his body from Abbottabad to Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan. There his identity was confirmed through DNA test and facial recognition. The DNA was matched with the sample of his sister, which was already with the US.

After this, the US threw Osama bin Laden’s body into an ocean. The world has no information about which ocean it is and where it is.

Afzal Guru was guilty of the attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001. Afzal was hanged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail on February 9, 2013. After this, he was buried in the prison premises itself.

It is noteworthy that Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front founder Maqbool Butt was also buried in Tihar after being hanged in 1984. His body was also not returned, and this decision was effective in maintaining peace in the valley at that time. The same policy was adopted in Afzal’s case as well.

Ajmal Kasab

Ajmal Kasab, the only surviving terrorist of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, was hanged in Pune’s Yerwada jail on November 21, 2012. His body was also buried in the jail premises, and the exact location of his grave was not made public.

Then Pakistan’s then Home Minister Rehman Malik had said that Kasab’s family had not made any request to ask for his body.

No government wants the bodies of such persons with such extreme anti-social identity to become a threat to society, national security even after their death or create a ruckus in the name of ideology. Therefore, usually the bodies of such people are cremated secretly.

A threat to national security or create a ruckus in the name of ideology. Therefore, usually the bodies of such people are cremated secretly.

The issue of security and terrorism-extremism

Governments do not want the graves or final places of such persons to become a source of inspiration for extremist groups and extremist ideas. Because if this happens, some elements can start gathering at that place when the time and situation is favorable, this can create a law and order problem for the government. There can be a situation of conflict with the local people. Apart from this, people can gather at such places on special dates and spread a particular ideology.

Let us tell you that a symbolic grave of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru was built in North Srinagar. But the officials removed it immediately. Because people were gathering there.

Just a few days ago, Afzal Guru’s elder brother Ejaz Ahmed had said that he wanted to read Fateha at Afzal Guru’s grave in Tihar. But the government is not giving permission for this.

Preventing social/religious polarization

The government also does not want to keep the graves of such people/criminals because these places can create division in the society. Most people may consider them criminals or guilty of the nation, but for some elements such people can be sacrificers. The graves of such people can become the cause of constant tension in the society. That is why governments do not want to make any such identity public.

Legal and diplomatic reasons

Handing over the body to the family or country of origin may lead to legal claims, international disputes, or political pressure. The easier options are to keep it under control or destroy it. If the Indian government had started the process of handing over the body of Mumbai attack convict Ajmal Kasab to Pakistan, it could have created many controversies. First of all, Pakistan itself would have refused to accept such bodies to avoid disgrace.

Symbolic message

Governments want to show that this is the fate of such terrorists, criminals and people who have been sentenced to death in the country’s court. And their identity will be erased forever.

This sends a message to future criminals, terrorists and miscreants that they will neither be respected nor remembered.

In many cases, governments also hand over the bodies

However, in some cases, governments also hand over the bodies of people who have been sentenced to death by law to their families. As in India, the body of Yakub Memon (guilty of 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts) was handed over to his family. Before doing so, governments assess security, social impact, demographic equation. Many times, governments also take such decisions to balance public sentiments.