A controversy has erupted in Britain over the proposed second statue of Gandhiji in London, this one in Parliament Square. Why have you come out so strongly now? Men in position of power take advantage of their status. They have no qualms about abusing minors or women. All his life Gandhi was obsessed with sex —while preaching celibacy to others.
No one challenged him. Gandhi never made a secret of sleeping naked with is great-grand daughter and the wife of his great-grand son. It may have been his way of testing his control over his sexual drive, but these women were used as guinea pigs. If he had used other adult women, it would have been nothing more than interesting gossip. But Gandhi chose a teenage blood relation and a great-grand-daughter-in-law for his sexual whims. It is as unforgivable as it is unbelievable.
The world has changed. For women, personal freedom and self respect come before the freedom of the country and national leaders, however important or influential. But Gandhiji did give a great deal of space to women in the freedom struggle. For them it was a personal liberation. Yes Gandhi mobilized the women of India. One of the reasons for his success was that his political rallies were called prayer meetings.
In school, I studied the glory and greatness of the British Empire, but spent all my time outside in protest marches and dawn processions, ordering the British out of India. The Indian diaspora needs a role model for all the positive values of Indo-British relations. He was a great supporter of the suffragettes who campaigned for Home Rule for Ireland. He represented the culture and spirit of India in Britain as no other Indian did.
He was much loved and respected by Jinnah and Gandhi. He also happened to be the first Indian to represent the first Indian trading company in London in — and the first professor of Gujarati in London University.
