The Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust this week received £200,000 – the largest donation so far – towards the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square, London. The donation is from Rahul Bajaj, chairman of Bajaj Auto, to the trust established by Professor Lord (Meghnad) Desai to raise funds for the Mahatma Gandhi statue which will be sited directly opposite the Houses of Parliament in Westminster.
Professor Lord Desai said:
“This is a wonderful gift for the trust just before the New Year. Rahul Bajaj epitomises the best of Indian industrialists who have seen the transition of India from colonial rule to independence.
“When he called me a month ago to express his desire to donate, he was straightforward and impressive. He was happy to give the donation because he is a true Gandhian, and a believer all of his values.
“The Bajaj family has been associated with Gandhi for a long time. It is fitting that Rahul Bajaj has made this tremendous gesture.”
The trust expects all the money required for the statue to follow swiftly from this major donation. Small and large donations continue to flow in through the website of the trust at www.gandhistatue.org from followers of Mahatma Gandhi in the UK and the rest of the world.
With these donations from the general public, as well as pledges still coming in from larger donors, the trust is confident of completing its entire fundraising in January – and will be ready for the unveiling of the statue shortly after that.