New Delhi: Mahatma Gandhi may have long gone, but Father of the Nation is never far from controversy, even in his death.
First it was a debate over whether Hey Ram – Gandhi's famous last words – were uttered by him in the first place and now, another controversy over one of his most famous priciples – satyagraha.
A book written by former diplomat Pascal Alan Nazareth claims the word satyagraha - that literally translates to firm adherence to truth - that became synonymous with Gandhi was "not coined by him".
Nazareth's book Gandhi's Outstanding Leadership, claims it was Gandhi's cousin who who helped him decide on a name for his non-violent struggle.
"He (Mahatma Gandhi) offered a prize for an appropriate name for the new non-violent struggle they had decided upon. A cousin, Maganlal Gandhi, suggested Sadagraha (firmness in good cause). Gandhi amended it to Satyagraha," he said.
Releasing the book on the Gandhi on Tuesday evening, former prime minister I K Gujral said Gandhi is more relevant today as he has the capacity to influence our lives.
"World history would have been entirely different today had Gandhi chosen to remain silent after being thrown off on a South African station from a train," he said.
Senior journalist B G Verghese said Gandhi was much ahead of his times and his "vibrant principles" still remain active.
"Schemes like National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, organic farming, human rights issue are all founded on his principles. Long before the Rural Employment Bill was announced, Gandhiji introduced the concept of khadi to give work to everyone, so that no hand remained idle. He took up the cause of Harijans and ther downtrodden classes, much before human rights became a global issue," Verghese said.
(With PTI inputs)
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