Unmatched Contribution: Amit Shah Lauds Gita Press Amid Row Over Gandhi Peace Prize

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday launded the Gita Press for being awarded with the Gandhi Peace Prize and said it has been doing a wonderful job of selflessly taking several holy books to the masses.

The union minister also said the Gita Press getting the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021 is an honour for these 'Bhagirath' works being done by it.

"If India's glorious ancient Sanatan culture and scriptures can be read easily today, it is due to Gita Press's unmatched contribution. For more than 100 years, Gita Press has been doing a wonderful job of selflessly taking many holy books like Ramcharit Manas to Shrimad Bhagwad Gita to the masses. Conferring Gandhi Peace Prize 2021 on Gita Press is an honour of the work being done by it," Amit Shah tweeted in Hindi.

The jury headed by Prime Minister Modi unanimously decided to select Gita Press as the recipient of the award on Sunday.

"I congratulate Gita Press, Gorakhpur on being conferred the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021. They have done commendable work over the last 100 years towards furthering social and cultural transformations among the people. GitaP ress," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Sunday.

Established in 1923, Gita Press is one of the world's largest publishers, having published 41.7 crore books in 14 languages, including 16.21 crore Shrimad Bhagvad Gita.

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

Congress attacks govt over Gandhi Peace Prize

However, the Congress party has criticised awarding the prize to Gita Press and called it a "travesty".

The party's general secretary-in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, "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 and social agenda," he said.

About Gandhi Peace Prize

Gandhi Peace Prize is an annual award instituted by Government of India in 1995, on the occasion of 125th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi as a tribute to the ideals espoused by Mahatma Gandhi. The award is open to all persons regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or gender.

The award carries an amount of Rs. 1 crore, a citation, a plaque and an exquisite traditional handicraft/handloom item.