BIOGRAPHY OF GANDHI
GANDHI - A PICTORIAL BIOGRAPHY

by Shri B. R. Nanda


GANDHI - A Pictorial Biography

GANDHI
- A PICTORIAL BIOGRAPHY

Shri B. R. Nanda


Table of Contents


About This Book


This is the first pictorial biography of Gandhi in which the narrative-concise, readable and incisive is illustrated with contemporary photographs and facsimiles of letters, newspaper reports and cartoons, adding up to a fascinating flash-back on the life of Mahatma Gandhi and the struggle for Indian freedom led by him. There is a skilful matching in this book of text and illustrations, of description and analysis and of concrete detail and large perspective. This pictorial biography will revive many memories in those who have lived through the Gandhian era; it should also be of interest to the post-independence generation.

About Author

Shri B. R. Nanda - former Director, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi. His full-scale biography of Mahatma Gandhi has been published in India, Britain and the U.S.A. and translated into French, Spanish, Italian and several other languages

Chapter-31 : Mission of Peace

Newspaper Report On Riots In East Bengal Gandhi In Noakhali January 30, 1948: A Page From Jawaharlal Nehru's Diary
1. Newspaper Report On Riots In East Bengal.
2. Gandhi In Noakhali
3. January 30, 1948: A Page From Jawaharlal Nehru's Diary Recording Gandhi's Assassination.

The tales of woe that Gandhi heard burned themselves into his soul, but he did not falter in his conviction that only non-violence and love could end this spiral of hate and violence. In his prayer speech every evening, he touched on this problem. He stressed the futility of retaliation. He wore himself out in an effort to re-educate the people; he heard grievances, suggested solutions, encouraged or admonished his numerous interviewers, visited refugee camps, remained in touch with local officials.
On January 13, 1948, he began a fast; "my greatest fast," he wrote to Miraben, his English disciple. It was also to be his last. The fast was not to be broken until Delhi became peaceful. The fast had a refreshing impact upon Pakistan. In India there was an emotional shake-up. The fast compelled people to think afresh on the problem on the solution of which he had staked his life. On January 18, representatives of various communities and parties in Delhi signed a pledge in Gandhi's presence that they would guarantee peace in Delhi.
After this fast the tide of violence showed definite signs of ebbing. Gandhi felt free to make his plans for the future. He thought he should visit Pakistan to promote the process of reconciliation between the two countries and the two communities. Even as he had grappled with communal violence, the real problems of India, the social and economic uplift of her people, had never been absent from his mind. Political freedom having become a fact, Gandhi's mind was switching more and more to constructive work, and to the refurbishing of his non-violent technique.