Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday gifted to his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott Australian lawyer John Lang’s 1854 petition against the East India Company on behalf of Rani Lakshmibai .
Mr. Modi gave the gift to Mr. Abbott just ahead of bilateral talks.
“John Lang’s original petition of 1854 on behalf of Jhansi ki Rani against the East India Company,” External Affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin tweeted.
Earlier, Mr. Modi was given a ceremonial guard of honour and a 19-gun salute at the forecourt of the Parliament. Prime Minister Abbott and several Indians were present on the occasion. Then he proceeded towards the Prime Minister’s Office for bilateral talks. Born in 1816 in Sydney, Lang is generally regarded as Australia’s first native novelist. As a man of many talents, he was also a lawyer, journalist and born traveller. In 1842, he sailed to India and made the country his new home, even learning the Hindustani language. While carrying on a successful legal practice, he started a newspaper in 1845 called The Moffusilite , published initially from Meerut and later from Mussoorie. The paper often took a critical stance against the East India Company’s harmful policies and consequently he was sued and briefly jailed by the Company.
In 1854, Lang became the counsel of Lakshmibai — an iconic figure in the Indian uprising of 1857.
