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Nandini Oza
Nandini Oza

HARDSHIP

Gandhi's penurious grandson battles for life

Life has come to a full circle for Kanubhai Gandhi. Kanubhai, whose photograph as a youngster holding his grandfather Mahatma Gandhi's stick at Juhu Beach in Mumbai during the Dandi March is famous, remains on ventilator support at a private hospital in Surat after he suffered a heart attack a few days ago. His left side has been paralysed.

gandhi-grandson Image courtesy: Gandhi Virtual Ashram website

For the last few months, Kanubhai, 86, has been staying with his wife Shivalaxmi, 90, at Ramakrishna Temple on the famous Athwa Lines of Surat. The couple have no children.

Kanubhai had worked with NASA as a scientist and spent larger part of his life in the United States. His wife was a professor and researcher at the Boston Biomedical Research Institute. The couple returned to India sometime in 2014 and stayed at various places, including Ahmedabad and New Delhi, before choosing to stay in Surat.

He was rushed to the Shiv Jyoti Hospital by the Temple Trust president Kailash Chhabra. 

What is surprising is that there has been no help announced either by the Gujarat government or the Union government. According to those taking care of him, except for his two sisters, nobody from Gandhi's family has inquired about Kanubhai. Shivalaxmi suffers from age related issues and hearing loss.

Dhimant Badhia, who runs a weaving centre at the Gandhi Ashram, helped the ailing Gandhi with a personal contribution of Rs 21,000. “My ancestors had worked with Gandhiji and he is grandson of (Mahatma) Gandhi. I thought I should help,” he told THE WEEK. Badhia said that he had put up a word to other Gandhians and political leaders, including from the Congress.

A couple of days ago, the BJP announced that it would take care of all his expenses. State BJP spokesman Bharat Pandya said that they had given instruction to Surat unit president to visit the hospital, almost daily. Pandya told THE WEEK that they would decide upon the kind of assistance that could be given to Shivalaxmi in case, "God forbid", something untoward happens to Kanubhai.

It is still not known as to where the money that Kanubhai and his wife earned in the United States went. Dilip Patel, a senior journalist working with a vernacular daily in Ahmedabad, said that in the past when Kanubhai stayed in the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, he had attempted asking this question several times. “But Kanubhai did not reply,” Patel said.

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Topics : #Gujarat

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