Govt paid 18,500 pounds to retrieve Gandhi letters from Christie's

New Delhi, July 31 (UNI) The government today disclosed that it paid a hefty 18,500 pounds to prevent a set of seven Gandhi letters from falling under the hammer at the Christie's auction house in London on July 3.

The letters, which were brought to India on July 18, were formally handed over by Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) President Karan Singh to the Gujarat-based Navjivan Trust this evening.

Navjivan Trust Managing Trustee Jitendra Desai, who received the letters, in turn, handed them over to Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) Director Mridula Mukherjee.

Dr Singh told reporters that the letters were bought from the Chirstie's for a total amount of 18,500 pounds, which comprised 15,000 pounds as the base price and 3,500 pounds as the auction house's commission and local taxes.

''We thought it would be in the fitness of things if the priceless letters are kept in the NMML, which has emerged as the major repository of documents and other material of the freedom movement,'' he said.

Dr Singh said all the letters of Pandit Nehru and some letters and manuscripts of Mahatma Gandhi are treasured in the NMML, and it was thought that the seven letters should also be kept there.

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