Dubai: The Indian diplomatic missions in the UAE marked the 153rd birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, India’s Father of the Nation, on Sunday.
Born on October 2, 1869, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was the main leader of India’s independence movement who espoused nonviolence.
Gandhi’s birth anniversary known as ‘Gandhi Jayanti’ is a public holiday in India and is marked with commemorative ceremonies.
Internationally, it is observed as the United Nations International Day of Nonviolence. According to a UN General Assembly resolution issued in 2007, which established the commemoration, the International Day is an occasion to “disseminate the message of non-violence, including through education and public awareness”.
Floral tributes
At the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Indian Ambassador to the UAE Sunjay Sudhir and his wife Vandana Sudhir paid floral tributes at Gandhi’s bust.
“May the ideals of peace and nonviolence continue to guide us in all our pursuits,” the embassy said in a post while sharing photos of the ceremony on social media.
The mission also organised a virtual narration on ‘Mahatma Gandhi’s Global Leadership for Peace, Nonviolence and Satyagraha’ on Sunday afternoon. The narration by Dr Shobhana Radhakrishna, an internationally acclaimed speaker on Gandhi, was held in association with the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.
At the Indian Consulate in Dubai, Consul General of India in Dubai, Dr Aman Puri, and consuls led the floral tribute ceremony. It was followed by a rendition of ‘Vaishnav Jan To’, one of the favourite bhajans of Gandhi who included it into the roster of prayers routinely sung before his meetings.
An annual inter-school debate competition organised under the patronage of the Consulate this year as part of Gandhi Jayanti will be held at GEMS Our Own Indian School in Al Quoz on October 14, the mission said.
