The Indian government has signed a contract with auctioneers Sotheby’s to purchase a large archive related to Mahatma Gandhi that was scheduled to go under the hammer on July 10.
Since the contract was signed, the auction would not be held next week, sources in the Indian government told PTI on Friday.
The archive contains thousands of letters, documents and photographs that throw light on the controversial relationship between Gandhiji and architect Hermann Kallenbach, and is expected to be a rich resource for researchers and historians.
Meanwhile, Sotheby’s in a statement said: “The Gandhiji-Kallenbach archive, which had been scheduled to be offered as Lot 30 in Sotheby’s English Literature, History, Children’s Books and Illustrations Auction on July 10, 2012, has been withdrawn from sale.”
The archive was recently examined by a team of experts from the Union Ministry of Culture, which reportedly described it as “very well preserved and of inestimable value.”
The archive was expected to fetch a price between £500,000 and £700,000. The auctioneer’s Catalogue Note said: “It is richly informative of the important [and occasionally misunderstood] friendship between the two men, and is a key biographical source for Gandhi.”
The archive includes “poignant letters” by the deeply troubled Harilal, Gandhi’s first son, and reveals Kallenbach’s deep friendship in particular with Gandhi’s second son Manilal, who stayed on the Phoenix Settlement in South Africa, and his third son Ramdas.
“These letters, together with those by other family members, Mahadev Desai, and other of Gandhiji’s close associates in India, provide a detailed portrait of Gandhiji’s personal life in India,” the note said.
“This extraordinarily rich archive stands...as a testament to a hugely significant figure in the life of Gandhi and a key member of his inner circle.”
The government did not show any urgency to buy Mahatma's spectacles, Tipu
sultan's sword or any other artifacts. However, is very prompt to acquire these
documents that are known to be controversial. Is the Govt. ever going to release
these documents for study or is this an attempt to suppress these documents so as
not to "tarnish" Mahatma Gandhi's image? Given how much Congress banks on the
Gandhi name and history to sway the masses every election it won't be a surprise if
they make these documents highly inaccessible.
Can we give this Gandhi worship a rest for a change! All our history books have words or praise and adulation mainly two figures of modern India - Gandhi and Nehru. Whereas scientists like SN Bose, Meghnad Saha etc go unsung, specially SN Bose (of boson fame) since he had the 'audacity' to publicly disagree with the national demigod JN Nehru! Gandhi got eternal deification in Indian history books and Nehru family is still ruling the country, what else do they want!
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