One of the most striking images of the recently concluded G20 diplomatic spectacle in New Delhi was of world leaders gathered at Rajghat, Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial. Gandhi was cremated here after being assassinated by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu supremacist with ties to right-wing Hindutva groups. Gandhi remains India’s biggest global “brand.” At the G20, US President Joe Biden voiced a heart-felt tribute to the Mahatma’s notion of ‘trusteeship’. The BJP has used the Mahatma’s spectacles to publicise Swachh Bharat, and PM Modi has been photographed spinning a charkha. However, in a supreme irony, while the ruling party appropriates Gandhi and his legacy to build its image abroad among international leaders, at home, it lends tacit support to the cult of Gandhi’s assassin, Godse.
