In a shocking incident, billboards portraying the murder of Mahatma Gandhi were pulled down in Nagpur, says a statement issued by Hum Bharat Ke Log (HBKL), who has condemned this act, where, the group states, “even the public portrayal of the murder of Mahatma Gandhi is forbidden.”
This year, 2025, marked the 77th anniversary of the commemoration of the Martyrdom of Gandhiji, who was murdered on January 30, 1948, precisely at 5.17 pm. In keeping with the national tradition, this platform, HBKL has endeavoured to involve citizens, peoples’ movements and political parties across the spectrum, to mark this day, as a day of national introspection. The aim is to recall the Martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi in the context of his values and teachings, even as we recall all the martyrs of our freedom movement.
Towards this end, the platform had, with local support, put up six hoardings in Nagpur city, where Hum Bharat Ke Log (Nagpur) and Gandhi Smarak Nidhi (Nagpur) were actively involved in the initiative. The billboards, based on a creative effort of a Keralite artist, were put up in six locations across Nagpur.
The locations included – Variety Square FTF Lokmat, Gandhi Statue CA Road, Trimurti Nagar Square, Laxman Nagar Square, Akashwani Square & Bhole Petrol Pump. The billboards were put up in the late evening of January 29. One of the locations included the constituency of Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadvanis (BJP).
According to Prajwala Tatte (HBKL, Nagpur), who was coordinating this brave effort, “The company that we had given the contract to, began to call us that they would have to remove the hoardings, as they ‘portrayed violence’. Clearly, the advertising company was being threatened & and pressured by the government, though he was not willing to say this on record. He also said that you could maybe put up hoardings of Gandhiji’s funeral procession. Well, I told him that’s not for him to decide. The billboards were taken down between 1.00 pm and 2.00 pm yesterday, that is January 39.”
In a statement issued on January 31, the HBKL platform has stated that, under the present regime at the centre, the entire country has witnessed the video of Puja Shakun Pandey (Hindu Mahasabha, National Secretary), shooting at an effigy of Gandhiji, to mark the death anniversary of Gandhiji, as Shaurya Divas, in Aligarh. No visible action has been taken against her for promoting hate and violence – and the fact that she was eulogising the murder of the Father of our Nation.
At a time when “temples are being made in honour of Nathuram Godse, the murderer of our Bapu, the Father of our Nation,” the removal of billboards visually portraying Bapu’s death were pulled down, that too in a town that has the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The organisation has called for a national debate on the murder of Mahatma Gandhi and re-iterated their commitment to Mahatma Gandhi;s thoughts and moral values.
The statement has been issued by Dr. G. G. Parikh, Tushar Gandhi, Feroze Mithiborwala, Guddi S L, Sharad Kadam, Dhananjay Shinde, Santosh Ambekar, Ali Bhojani, Siddesh Kadam, Vanita Tondwalkar, Yashodhan Paranjpe and Archana Tajane.
Related:
Courts and the Gandhi murder case: What happened on January 30 and who was behind it?