Remembering The Apostle of Peace, Non-Violence by Nandkumar Kamat
ALMOST three generations have witnessed a transforming India after the brutal assassination of Mahatma Gandhi on January 30, 1948 at 5.17 p.m. His 60 th death anniversary is an important day for the whole world which faces two interesting situations-the threat of global warming and the rising wave of mindless terrorism. Gandhiji had correctly predicted such a state of affairs. Mahatma Gandhi became a martyr for the noble cause of peace. No mass leader of modern times has combined politics with spirituality so effectively to become a powerful moral force. A senior IAS officer, V. Ramamurthy, after retirement wrote a beautiful series of articles- "Mahatma Gandhi- The last 200 days" in Chennai's "The Hindu" from July 15, 1997 to 30 January 1998.
These have been published as a collection in the compendium-from the pages of The Hindu. About the 200 th day, the last day in Mahatmaji's life- Ramamurthy has written-" Barrister, servant of society, relentless toiler for the freedom of his people, non violent crusader for amity and peace, and pillar of the Indian national congress, Gandhiji had been working on a draft revised constitution for the party almost endlessly. The work had left the frail man of 107 pounds severely exhausted. On January 29, 1948 he had told his associates, " I am very tired. Yet I must finish this task". Gandhiji was actually writing a detail plan - a roadmap of recasting the Congress party and empowering the people from the grassroots. Gandhiji wanted to disband the existing congress organization and convert it into a Lok Sevak Sangh. But this did not happen after his death. In reality the Indian Parliamant took 45 years after his death to consider some concessions to the "grass roots" after passing the 73 rd and 74 th amendments to the constitution.
But even these are yet to be implemented in letter and spirit. Ramamurthy has captured the final moments of Mahatmaji-" Friday, January the 30 th , began on the calendar from the midnight hour. Gandhiji's working schedule had him out of bed a just over three hours later. He completed his morning preparations, composed his troubled mind, and said his morning prayer." Ramamurthy tells us about his engagements till evening. He had a meeting with Sardar Patel in the evening which had delayed him for the evening prayer meeting. Gandhiji was worried about the differences between Nehru and Patel. I reproduce here the last moments of Mahatmaji so vividly captured by Ramamurthy-" Gandhiji told the Sardar-" Now I must tear myself away !." Leaning on the shoulders of Abha and Manu, Bapu walked towards the dais from where he would listen the devotionals and then deliver his speech.. Abha remarked lightly to Gandhiji that the watch dangling from the waist was bound to feel neglected as he would not look at tit all. Bantering in his turn, the Mahatma said, " Why should I, since you two are my time-keepers?"
As he ascended the rise to approach the dais, he told the two girls, " it is your fault that I am ten minutes late. It is the duty of nurses to carry on their work even if God himself should be present there. If it is time to give medicine to a patient, and a nurse feels hesitant to do so, the poor patient will die. So it is with the medicine of prayer. It irks me if I am late for prayers by even a minute.". The last conversational remarks had been made. The very last steps Bapu would take were now being taken. Past the steps he was now coming towards the dais. Gandhiji took his arms from the shoulders of Abha and Manu to fold his hands and acknowledge the benign smile, eyes shining from behind his wire framed glasses, the namaskars many offered to him.
Now with a namaskar that was like a Judas kiss, there came a thickset man clad in a bush-shirt, with nads folded. He approached Gandhiji frontally. As the man bowed, Manu tried to dissuade him from touching Bapu's feet as she thought he was trying to do. The strong man pushed her away brusquely, impatiently: he wanted a clear line of fire for the Beretta pistol he had drawn from a trouser pocket. Now there ring out three shots in quick succession. Even from a child they cannot miss their mark from that almost point-blank range. Two bullets enter one after another the right side of the chest of the frail man on his last walk. The third goes into the right side of the Mahatma's abdomen. Bapu's uplifted foot falters as the first bullet strikes.
As the second and the third hit, he sinks gently to the floor, breathing out his last two words, holy in thankfulness or supplication, "He Ram!". His voice will speak no more. The crimsoning sunset on the sky witnesses the green smooth lawn around the crumpled victim, his clothes staining red from precious life-blood. Within minutes Bapu will be dead. The time is 5.17 p.m. An epoch has ended. That was the last day of a great life." Mahatma Gandhi's grandson Rajmohan Gandhi in his very well researched and unforgettable book-'Mohandas, a true story of a man, his people and an empire' had likened Gandhiji's body to saint Kabir's chadariya. In the last chapter titled "to Rama" he concludes-" That Gandhi, the spirit that wanted to bless and forgive his assassin, even as it wanted to bless and forgive all the grudge-bearing residents of India, Pakistan , and the world-the spirit that brought the chadariya's hands together and wanted to take the name of God at the moment of death, that Gandhi the bullets did not kill.
They only released that Gandhi for the ages and the continents." Ramchandra Guha in his "India after Gandhi' has aptly chronicled the progress of Indian democracy after Mahatmaji's martyrdom. Gandhiji 's martyrdom had a message for all the humanity- violence is not the answer to any problem. People have to understand each other as fellow human beings. I searched every page of history of mankind to find a personality like Mahatma Gandhi-there was none. His life and work can not be condensed in a cheap word like -Gandhigiri, introduced and popularized by a Hindi film. Gandhiji has left behind his writings exceeding one lakh pages. These volumes merely decorate many government offices and libraries. It is for India's half a billion youth to be inspired from Gandhiji's ideals and mould these in their attitudes to save the distressed planet and the stressed humanity. Bullets finished a life-but could not kill Gandhiji's ideals found increasingly relevant by a globalized world.
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