Replica of AK-47 that 26/11 terrorist used is a top seller with kids this festive season, say firework sellers
Replica of AK-47 that 26/11 terrorist used is a top seller with kids this festive season, say firework sellers
It's called an AK-47 (3-in-1) gun and is vanishing off toyshop shelves almost as soon as it arrives.
Its USP: shopkeepers have been selling it as the gun Ajmal Amir Qasab used to kill 72 people in Mumbai on November 26, 2008.
Of course, it's a fake gun, that will allow kids to insert a roll cracker, or an arrow and or a rocket, and shoot up the neighbourhood.
The gun costs Rs 100 and shopkeepers say it's bringing in enough business to get them out of the red.
Qasab used an AK-47 during the Mumbai's night of unmitigated terror.
High demand
Minesh Mehta, secretary, Mumbai and Thane Firework Dealers' Welfare Association, said, "It is impossible to say exactly how many of these guns have been sold across Mumbai, but I can confirm that the demand is very high, in fact, quite unparalleled.
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AK-tion packed: A boy plays with the toy gun at a shop. |
The gun is made in India and is made to last. We may not be actually selling it as the gun Qasab used, but interest in the gun has certainly increased."
In fact, most stores selling toy guns or pistols used during Diwali admitted off record that the AK-47 (3-in1) was being sold as the 'gun terrorist Qasab used' and parents had been actively asking for them.
But fearing public outcry over a deifying terrorist, none of them were willing to be quoted.
A shopkeeper at Mohammed Ali Road said, "The gun looks exactly like the one Qasab used in the terror attacks.
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I know kids have been asking for it, but may beu00a0 because it looks different."
He however said, not a single child had come asking for the gun, specifically because it looked like Qasab's.
Another shopowner at Malad said, "That terrorist's gun [he refused to name Qasab] and this toy one is the same brand, that's all."
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But at the owner of another store, a few blocks away, said parents did not really know that Qasab had used an AK-47, but that it was shopkeepers who pushed the gun with the Qasab tag.
A shopowner from Parel confirmed, "My stock of 240 AK-47s have been sold out and I'm waiting to replenish my stocks."
'It's not true'But Altaf Dawoodani, organiser of the fireworks mela at BKC, said, "AK-47 is a well-known gun and everyone knew that Qasab had used it.
But instead of pegging my sales on to it, I decided to veto the gun. After my first lot of 250 AK-47s sold, I didn't restock.
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All Fired Up: People at a firecracker shop at Mohammed Ali Road, yesterday. |
Parents were interested in the gun, but they have been sensitised to not buying it for children." A stall owner, on condition of anonymity, who listened in to the conversation, took this reporter aside and said, "It's not true.
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We have been getting specific requests for this gun and parents generally the dads have asked if that was the gun Qasab used."
Added Dinesh S Tarfe, who was with his son, Prasad (5), "I found the gun fascinating as it has a three-in-one system. My son insisted on it so I will buy it for him."
And then, the noise. "Firecrackers and toy guns make a lot of noise. There are many firecrackers like Kargil and all but never heard something like this," said Sumaira Abdulali, founder, Awaaz Foundation.
No 'China Item'Almost all the toy guns available in the market are made in India.
On January 23, 2009 the government imposed a six-month ban on the imports of Chinese-made toys to seemingly protect its growing toy market from cheap foreign imports.
The government also banned the items as a safety measure.
For nearly two years, officials and non-profit consumer groups have collected data showing many of the toys in the Indian market, especially those from China, have high levels of lead and cadmium.
BestsellersAK-47 (3-in-one)
Metal Fighter gunu00a0
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The two other guns look similar to the AK series, but does not mimic either a real AK-47 or an u00a0AK-56
145 dBAll firecrackers, except for flowerpots and sparklers, are around this decibel
125 dBThe noise level of the AK-47 (3-in-1)
55The permissible u00a0decibel level during the day
45The permissible u00a0decibel level at night
85The decibel level that can damage human ears the noise created by an idling bulldozeru00a0
