Arun Manilal Gandhi, who was the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and a social activist, passed away on Tuesday in the Kolhapur district of Maharashtra after a short period of illness. Tushar Gandhi, his son who came to town, said that the funeral ceremony was held later in the day. Arun Gandhi was born to Manilal Gandhi and Sushila Mashruwala on April 14, 1934 in Durban, South Africa. Arun spent time at Avani Sanstha, an organisation that works for girls and women in need, during his visit to Kolhapur, which began on February 28. Sadly, he became ill while working for the organisation and passed away. According to Avani Sanstha, Arun Gandhi travelled to India at the age of 12 to live with Mahatma Gandhi at Sevagram Ashram. He returned to South Africa in 1948 and became involved in a variety of social activities.According to Avanis founder, Arun Chavan, Arun Gandhi played an important role in supporting the organisation and acting as a father figure for the group. He had been residing with them at the Hanbarwadi campus since February after his medical condition became worse during the visit.After marrying Sunanda in 1957, Arun Gandhi was notified by the South African government that she would not be permitted to accompany him there. As a result, they chose to live in India, where Arun worked for 30 years as a journalist. Later, in 1987, they relocated to the United States and founded the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence at Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tennessee.When Columbia Pictures released Gandhi, a movie based on his grandfathers life, in 1982, Arun Gandhi penned a critical piece stating that the Indian government had spent USD 25 million subsidising the film while there were more serious matters to address. This showed the brave honesty and social and political commitment of Arun Gandhi, just like his grandfather. Image: TwitterHowever, after watching a special screening of the movie, Arun Gandhi stated that, despite some historical inaccuracies, it effectively conveyed his grandfathers philosophy and legacy. As a result, he retracted his previous criticism in a subsequent piece of writing.
