THE LOS Angeles-based owner of Mahatma Gandhi memorabilia up for auction in New York this week has offered to sell the rare collection to India to advance the cause of non-violence.
New Delhi is under intense domestic pressure to acquire the Indian independence leader’s pocket watch and spectacles, among other items, on the grounds that they are part of India’s national heritage.
James Otis, the pacifist activist who owns the collection, said he feared the Indian government would try to stop the Madison Avenue auction through a court order or an appeal to the US State Department. In spite of Indian officials pledging last week to acquire Gandhi’s belongings, Mr Otis said no offer had been made to him or the auction house, Antiquorum, where they are due to go under the hammer on Thursday.
The items include Gandhi’s Zenith pocket watch, steel-rimmed spectacles, a pair of sandals and a bowl and plate. The reserve price for the collection is $20,000-$30,000 but open bidding by private collectors might drive the price much higher.
Mr Otis offered to negotiate with New Delhi for the collection to return to India for public display. He also said he would consider a wider commitment to improve the lives of India’s people as payment for the collection.
“Indians deserve healthcare. About 1 per cent of GDP is spent on healthcare. If it was increased considerably, I would be honoured to make a deal with the auction house to give them to [India].”
Admirers of Gandhi, who eschewed materialism, will find irony in his trademark accoutrements being put up for sale among watches belonging to America’s richest families. His 1910 watch sits alongside a chronometer that belonged to US president John F Kennedy and later Aristotle Onassis, and a watch made for Henry Graves, the US banker.
Tushar Gandhi, Gandhi’s great grandson, has led calls for the belongings to return to India for public display. He has criticised the sale as “reprehensible” and attempted to raise public money to purchase the collection.
India’s foreign and culture ministries have said they stand ready to intervene in the sale.
– (Financial Times service)