All praise for Mallya's 'gandhigiri'

Updated on: 06 March,2009 07:33 PM IST |
MiD DAY Correspondent |

All praise for Mallya's 'gandhigiri'

National treasure will soon return home with industrialist Vijay Mallya buying Mahatma Gandhi's personal belongings including the iconic round eye-glasses for USD 1.8 million (Rs 9.3 crore) at an action-packed auction in New York yesterday.
Mallya bought the memorabilia after a day of high drama as the auction had gone ahead, despite protests from India, and the United States-based owner James Otis' last-minute attempt to halt it.
The auction was sharply criticised in India as many viewed the items as part of the national heritage. However, they are now a happy that the memorabilia will soon be back home and theyu00a0were all praise for the liquor baron. A blogger says, "The king of good times turned out be the king of 1.3 billion Indian hearts after he successfully bid for Mahatma Gandhi's iconic belongings for a whopping 1.8 million dollars. Vijay Mallya saved the day today but I don't really think donating them back to the Indian government will be of much use."
Another blogger says, "It's a proud moment for every Indian. And Mallya's announcement of donating the Mahatma's belongings to the Indian government for the public display exhibits his generosity. The government should honour Mallya for his patriotic act."
However, the UPA Government now has taken credit for bringing the belongings of Mahatma Gandhi back in the country by saying, "this is the victory of the UPA Government." Tourism Minister Ambika Soni speaking to the media, said, "Mallya's representative was in constant touch with us. He bought the items in conjunction with the government. We were working on several options to get the items back. This is a victory for the UPA government."