Click to play videoNew Delhi: After days of hectic lobbying and bargaining, the Indian government on Tuesday obtained possession of an article written by Mahatma Gandhi which was to be auctioned by Christie’s auction house in London.
Christie’s withdrew the manuscript - pegged at a starting price of £9,000-£12,000 - after a request from the Indian government.
“The Government of India is in possession of the manuscript Mahatma Gandhi had written 19 days before his assassination pleading for tolerance of Muslims in India,” a senior official of the Indian High Commission official was quoted by news agency PTI on Tuesday.
However, it’s still unclear if the government paid a price to reclaim the letter. Government officials were quoted by news agencies as saying they negotiated with Christie’s and representatives of late Albin Schram, the owner. “The conditions of the transaction have to be kept in confidence,” he said.
The document was withdrawn from the session by auctioneers Christie's after negotiations with the Indian government.
Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee did not rule out the possibility of Government having paid up for acquiring the manuscript.
He was quoted as saying by news reports that paying up “was a part of negotiation.”
The High Commission official thanked Christie's and Dr Amin Jaffer, International director of Asian Art at Christie's for facilitating the negotiations.
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