Q&A - `Gandhi was obsessed with sex ­while preaching celibacy to others'
A controversy has erupted in Britain over the proposed second statue of Gandhiji in London, this one in Parliament Square. Kusoom Vadgama, the doughty 82-year-old historian and former `Gandhi worshipper', tells Bachi Karkaria why she is leading the fight brigade against the statue.

You have reportedly opposed the statue because of Gandhi's `debasement of women' by his experiments with sexual selfcontrol.

Men in position of power take advantage of their status. They have no qualms about abusing minors or women. All his life Gandhi was obsessed with sex ­while preaching celibacy to others. No one challenged him. He was the nation's `untouchable' hero, his iconic status eclipsed all his wrong doings. The protest against yet another statue of his in London, just two miles from the one in Tavistock Square, is a perfect opportunity to speak the truth about this other people's Mahatma.

What angers you most about this known truth?
Gandhi never made a secret of sleeping naked with his greatgrand daughter and the wife of his great-grand son. It may have been his way of testing his control over his sexual drive, but these women were used as guinea pigs. If he had used other adult women, it would have been nothing more than interesting gossip. But Gandhi chose a teenage blood relation and a great-grand-daughter-in-law for his sexual whims. I have no fear or hesitation in telling the truth about him. Ironically , it was he who instilled in me the mantra of `satyameva jayate'.

With his place in global iconography, will your voice be heeded? Gandhi's darker side was ignored but never forgotten. Now, the brutal gang rape of Nirbhaya, and horrendous sexual crimes everywhere have brought into deep focus the helplessness of women; opened wounds of the indignity of being used. Yes, at a different level, but just as humiliatingly . The world has changed. For women, personal freedom and self respect come before the freedom of the country and national leaders, however important or influential.

But Gandhiji did give a great deal of space to women in the freedom struggle. For them it was a personal liberation.

Yes Gandhi mobilised the women of India. One of the reasons for his success was that his political rallies were called prayer meetings. Women attended in thousands not only to listen to him but also to have the `darshan' of the saintly man.

Earlier, you too `worshipped Gandhi'.

Kusoom Vadgama

He was my God inNairobi,Kenya, where both myparentsweredeeply involvedin India's free dom movement.

In school, i stud ied the gloryand great ness of the British Empire, but spent all my time outside in protest marches and dawn processions, ordering the British out of India. I even shouted `Jai Hind' to the English school teacher, and thought I'd be expelled.

Why have you pitched for a statue of Dadabhai Naoroji instead?
The Indian diaspora needs a role model for all the positive values of Indo-British relations. Dadabhai Naoroji, Britain's first Indian MP elected in1892, deserves to be in Parliament Square. He was a a great supporter of the suffragettes who campaigned for Home Rule for Ireland. He represented the culture and spirit of India in Britain as no other Indian did. He was much loved and respected by Jinnah and Gandhi.
He also happened to be the first Indian to represent the first Indian trading company in London in 1855 ­ and the first professor of Gujarati in London University .

Source: The Times of India dt 16-8-14