Despite row, UK town to have Gandhi statue soon

The east Midlands town of Leicester with its large population of Indian origin will soon have a statue of Mahatma Gandhi with plans for its installation later this year reaching an advanced stage.

Despite opposition by a section of the local population, the local council last year cleared the proposal of Samanwaya Pariwar, a local charity organisation to install Gandhi's statue to recognise his life and ideas that influenced the world.

The statue is being built at a cost of 20,000 pounds, paid for by the Samanvaya Parivar, by the celebrated Indian sculptor, Gautam Pal. The seven-and-a-half-feet statue depicts Gandhi walking with a stick, and is scheduled to shipped from India to Leicester shortly.

"The statue is nearly complete. It will be shipped to the UK from Kolkata and then, once the plinth is ready – the plinth is being made in the UK – we can look to get it erected," spokesman for the Samanvaya Parivar charity Jitendra Acharya said.

The statue will stand on a five-foot plinth on the corner of Belgrae Road, the centre of Asian culture and business, where branches of several Indian banks are located.

A spokeswoman for the Leicester City Council said its planning department was finalising the statue's plinth with the Samanwaya Pariwar.

Lauding Gautam Pal's work Acharya said, "We were very fortunate to get him to do it. He has completed several statues of Gandhi – they unveiled one in Turin last March. He also sculpted statues of Gandhi in Switzerland, Ohio and Washington State.

"It is good to know that Leicester will not only get a statue of a respected world leader, but a figure sculpted by a renowned artist. We don't have a firm date yet, but I hope it will be by the start of summer."

The proposal to install the statue has been largely welcomed but there is considerable opposition within the local population on the ground that Gandhi did not have any links with Leicester, and that the statue of a local hero would be more appropriate.

On Facebook, groups for and against the statue have been established Local author Bali Rai told the local media that the real debate was not about the merits of Gandhi, but the city's civic pride and the connection Gandhi had with Leicester.

He said, "I'm slightly bemused by it all. I can see that Gandhi might be a good choice for the Indian community of Leicester – but how will that be received by the other communities that make up Leicester?

"Will there be second generation Pakistani families who want to see a statue of Jinnah (ex-Pakistan leader) in Leicester? Polish people wanting a statue of Lech Walesa?"

Acharya said, "I think some have misunderstood our intentions. This is not being paid for by public money – this has not come from anyone's council tax. We are not looking for the council to fund it and our charity will maintain it.

"I don't think it is divisive. October 2 is a day celebrated worldwide as a day of non-violence. That is Gandhi's date of birth. He is an international symbol of peace and non-violence."