AHMEDABAD: A liquor baron to the “rescue” of Gandhiji’s memorabilia? The Bangalore-based liquor baron, Vijay Mallya, purchasing the belongings of the staunch prohibitionist at the New York auction has dismayed a small section of the Mahatma’s followers in his home State, Gujarat.

Atul Gameti, president of the Vadodara-based Navjivan Seva Samiti, who took out a rally with a handful of people, said he was happy that the Mahatma’s belongings would finally come back to India but he would have been happier had any other industrialist in the country or the Central government itself purchased the memorabilia.

At the same time, the Samiti submitted a memorandum to the Vadodara Collector praising Mr. Mallya’s action in preventing Gandhiji’s belongings from going elsewhere. The government should find out whether any other belongings of the Mahatma were still with any individual and bring them back to the country, the Samiti said.

The Ahmedabad-based Navjivan Trust, set up by the Mahatma in 1929 and willed by him to be the sole heir of all his belongings, however, said there was nothing wrong in Mr. Mallya making the purchases and said he “made India proud.”

Manufacturing liquor was Mr. Mallya’s business and was within the law of the land. He made the purchases only to hand over the Mahatma’s belongings to the Government of India and in turn to the Navjivan Trust, and not to use Gandhiji’s belongings to promote his liquor business. “What is wrong in his making the purchases,” asked Trust manager Sharad Jani.

He was thankful to Mr. Mallya for buying Gandhiji’s belongings.

On receiving the items, the Trust would donate them to the Nehru Museum in Delhi.

Source: hindu