Like awarding Savarkar and Godse: Cong opposes Gandhi Peace Prize to Gita Press

The prestigious Gandhi Peace Prize for 2021 has been awarded to Gita Press, Gorakhpur, one of the world's largest publishers. The announcement made by the Indian government on Sunday recognized the outstanding contribution of Gita Press towards social, economic, and political transformation through non-violent and other Gandhian methods.

However, the Congress party opposed the prize to Gita Press by calling the decision a "travesty" and saying that giving Gandhi Peace Prize to the publishing house is like awarding VD Savarkar and Nathuram Godse. Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh referred to the book "Gita Press And The Making Of Hindu India," which he claimed delves into the historical relationship between Gita Press and Mahatma Gandhi. Ramesh argued that the book highlighted the "stormy relations" the publishing house had with Gandhi.

"The Gandhi Peace Prize for 2021 has been conferred on the Gita Press at Gorakhpur which is celebrating its centenary this year. There is a very fine biography from 2015 of this organisation by Akshaya Mukul in which he unearths the stormy relations it had with the Mahatma and the running battles it carried on with him on his political, religious & social agenda," the Congress leader tweeted.

Attacking the government's decision to confer the prize to Gita Press, he said, "The decision is really a travesty and is like awarding Savarkar and Godse."

PM Modi praises Gita Press

Gita Press, established in 1923, holds a significant place in the publishing industry as one of the world's largest publishers. Over the years, it has published an impressive 41.7 crore books in 14 languages, including 16.21 crore copies of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita.

"Gandhi Peace Prize 2021, recognizes the important and unparalleled contribution of Gita Press, in contributing to the collective upliftment of humanity, which personifies Gandhian living in a true sense," the government statement read.

After the announcement of the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021 to Gita Press, PM Modi congratulated the publishing house. "They have done commendable work over the last 100 years towards furthering social and cultural transformations among the people," the Prime Minister said.

Gandhi Peace Prize

The Gandhi Peace Prize, instituted in 1995 on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's 125th Birth Anniversary, aims to honour individuals and organisations that embody the ideals and principles advocated by the great leader. The award is open to all, irrespective of nationality, race, language, caste, creed, or gender, and includes a cash prize of Rs. 1 crore, a citation, a plaque, and a traditional handicraft or handloom item.

Over the years, the Gandhi Peace Prize has been bestowed upon several renowned organizations and individuals from different countries who have exemplified the values and principles cherished by Mahatma Gandhi. The previous awardees include institutions such as ISRO, Ramakrishna Mission, Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari, Akshaya Patra, Bengaluru, Ekal Abhiyan Trust, India and Sulabh International, New Delhi. 

It has also been awarded to luminaries like Late Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa,  Julius Nyerere, Former President of Tanzania, AT Ariyaratne, Founder President of Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement, Sri Lanka,  Gerhard Fischer, Federal Republic of Germany, Baba Amte, John Hume, Ireland, Vaclav Havel, former President of Czechoslovakia, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, Chandi Prasad Bhatt and Yohei Sasakawa, Japan. Recent awardees include Sultan Qaboos Bin Said Al Said, Oman (2019) and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (2020), Bangladesh.