Express press service
BENGALURU: Mahatma Gandhi, in 1927, called the wearing of the veil for women a “barbaric custom” and which “does incalculable harm to the country” but, “he would have supported the girls (of Karnataka) who protested against the prohibition of hijab, if they chose to wear it,” said author, social activist and great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, Tushar Gandhi. His book “Let’s Kill Gandhi!” was published in 2007 and reissued this year.
Speaking to TNIE on the 78th anniversary of the death of his great-grandmother Kasturba Gandhi, Tushar said, “Gandhi had criticized women’s veil as retrograde and oppressive to women, but he and Ba would have supported girls protesting the hijab ban, provided they were convinced that girls were not forced to wear hijab,” he said.
“Bapu believed that nothing should be imposed by law. He had opposed the ban on cow slaughter although he had been a gau sevak (protector of cows) all his life. He said the cow was like a mother to him, but to many others she was food, so how could he support the ban? said Tushar.
On the growing communal division following the hijab dispute, he said: “Gandhi would have been deeply pained by the hatred and communal disharmony in the country. He believed that India would remain a secular country. Had he not been assassinated, he would have taken Hindus from India to Pakistan to establish their rights to the land where they had lived for generations and were forced to relocate after partition.
He had said that he would bring back to India the Muslims who had been uprooted during the partition. He had planned to travel to Pakistan in February 1948, but unfortunately that did not happen. Imagine the miracle that would have happened if he had lived and succeeded,” Tushar said.
He said that Kasturba Gandhi was a woman of substance. “You have to understand that at that time, the roles given to women were regressive. But Ba remained true to her beliefs. She followed her husband but on her own terms. She supported him after being convinced of the commitment he had made. She was the facilitator. Gandhi would not have been able to achieve what he did without Ba’s contribution. He recognized him after his death. We don’t see his legacy because he merged with Bapu’s iconic stature,” Tushar said. His book ‘The Lost Diary of Kastur, my Ba’ will soon be published.
Kasturba died on 22 February 1944 at the Aga Khan Palace detention camp in Pune in the presence of her husband. A biographical podcast in six episodes https://pod.link/kastur made with Tushar by Ashraf Engineer on Kasturba was released on the anniversary of his death.
BENGALURU: Mahatma Gandhi, in 1927, called the wearing of the veil for women a “barbaric custom” and which “does incalculable harm to the country” but, “he would have supported the girls (of Karnataka) who protested against the prohibition of hijab, if they chose to wear it,” said author, social activist and great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, Tushar Gandhi. Speaking to TNIE on the 78th anniversary of the death of his great-grandmother Kasturba Gandhi, Tushar said, “Gandhi had criticized the women’s veil as retrograde and oppressive to women, but he and Ba would have supported girls who were protesting against the hijab ban, provided they were convinced that girls were not forced to wear hijab,” he said. “Bapu believed that nothing should be imposed by the He had opposed the ban on the slaughter of cows, although he was a gau sevak (protector of cows) all his life. He said the cow was like a mother to him, but to many others she was food, so how could he support the ban? said Tushar. On the growing communal division following the hijab dispute, he said: “Gandhi would have been deeply pained by the hatred and communal disharmony in the country. He believed that India would remain a secular country. Had he not been assassinated, he would have taken Hindus from India to Pakistan to establish their rights to the land where they had lived for generations and were forced to relocate after partition. He had said that he would bring back to India the Muslims who had been uprooted during the partition. He had planned to travel to Pakistan in February 1948, but unfortunately that did not happen. Imagine the miracle that would have happened if he had lived and succeeded,” Tushar said. He said that Kasturba Gandhi was a woman of substance. “You have to understand that at that time, the roles given to women were regressive. But Ba remained true to her convictions. She followed her husband but on her own terms. She supported him after being convinced of the commitment he had made. She was the facilitator. Gandhi would not have been able to achieve what he did without Ba’s contribution. He recognized him after his death. We don’t see his legacy because he merged with Bapu’s iconic stature,” Tushar said. His book ‘The Lost Diary of Kastur, my Ba’ will soon be published. Kasturba died on 22 February 1944 at the Aga Khan Palace detention camp in Pune in the presence of her husband. A six-part biographical podcast https://pod.link/kastur made with Tushar by Ashraf Engineer on Kasturba was released on the anniversary of his death.
