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State omits Mahatma’s name from circular on Martyrs’ Day

Jan 22, 2025 07:40 AM IST

The state’s order was issued following a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed before the Bombay High Court, urging the court to instruct the Maharashtra government to restart the old practice, where sirens were sounded and two minutes’ silence was observed on this day

MUMBAI: The state has rolled out detailed instructions to revive the practice of observing January 30 as Martyrs’ Day, yet conspicuously absent is any mention of Mahatma Gandhi, the very leader in whose honour the day was established. The omission has evoked strong reactions from Gandhians, who claim the BJP-led Mahayuti government has “deliberately” dropped Gandhi’s name as it is ideologically opposed to his philosophy. Gandhi, one of the foremost leaders of the Indian freedom movement, was assassinated by a right-wing extremist on January 30, 1948.

State omits Mahatma’s name from circular on Martyrs’ Day
State omits Mahatma’s name from circular on Martyrs’ Day

The state’s order was issued following a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed before the Bombay High Court, urging the court to instruct the Maharashtra government to restart the old practice, where sirens were sounded and two minutes’ silence was observed on this day. The PIL was filed in 2023, a year after a circular was issued by the Union ministry of home affairs, directing all state governments and Union territories to observe Martyrs’ Day. That circular was issued on January 7, 2022.

While verdict on the PIL is awaited, the Maharashtra government’s general administration department issued a circular on January 15, 2025, stating: “In the memory of those who sacrificed their lives for the independence of the country, tributes are being paid by keeping two minutes of silence across the country. To follow the practice, ‘Martyr’s Day’ will be observed in the state at 11 in the morning on January 30. The commencement and termination of the silence are indicated by using sirens, which will be sounded at 10.59am and 11.03am respectively.” The government has instructed all government, semi-government offices and establishments, education institutions, universities, teaching and non-teaching staff and students to follow its directive.

The one-page circular also states that in places where a siren facility is not available, the authorities must take appropriate measures to ensure that Martyrs’ Day is observed as described.

Martyrs’ Day was instituted by the Jawaharlal Nehru government to honour the contribution of those who had died fighting for India’s independence from the colonial British. The day would be observed on January 30, the day Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead by Nathuram Godse, a right-wing extremist. The practice continued in Maharashtra till the 1990s, only to fade away in the years that followed.

“I read about the practice in 2018 and we started observing the day wherever possible. In 2023, I filed a PIL in the high court, urging the court to direct the government to observe Martyrs’ Day. The court asked me to prove if I was a Gandhian and if the practice was not being followed in the state. I have proved both points and a verdict is awaited,” said activist Feroze Mithiborwala. “It is bizarre that the government is asking us to observe Gandhiji’s martyrs’ day without mentioning Gandhiji’s name,” Mithiborwala remarked.

“I am not surprised at all,” remarked Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. “Why would the ideology that murdered him (Mahatma Gandhi) pay tribute to him?” Gandhi has written to governor CP Radhakrishnan, urging him to amend the order to include the Mahatma’s name.

“I wanted to bring to his (governor Radhakrishnan) notice that there is a flaw in the circular. I also wanted to remind him that although he comes from an ideology that does not subscribe to Gandhian ideas, as governor, he should acknowledge that it is Gandhi’s death anniversary,” Tushar Gandhi added.

HT reached out to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and chief secretary Sujata Saunik for comments on the issue, but there was no response from either of them.

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