Kerala teacher has Gandhi charkha, letters in his collection

Close on the heels of the auction of Mahatma Gandhi's memorabilia, a 68-year-old teacher here has claimed that he has a 'charkha' (spinning wheel) used by the father of the nation during his historic Dandi March.

A retired teacher and antique collector, Antony Chittatturaka said he obtained the charkha and certain other priceless articles from Gandhi's disciple Raghavji.

Antony said he has a pinch of blood-soaked sand taken from the spot in Delhi where Gandhi fell to Nathuram Godse's bullets and letters and post cards penned by Bapu with signatures appended to them. He also has a gramaphone record of Gandhi's speeches delivered at his prayer meetings.

Though there have been enquiries from various quarters about these articles, Antony said he would not give them away under any circumstances. "They might bring me a big sum. But I don't want to part with them so long as I am alive since their emotional value is much higer than material value," he said.

Of the 10 letters Antony has in his possession, two were written on post cards. The post cards, sent by Gandhi to Raghavji, carry the dates of February 2 and July 6, 1931. The charkha and the letters were gifted by the Mahatma to his disciple Naduvilpatt Raghavan Poduval, an inmate of the Sabarmathi Ashram, from whom Antony obtained them. The foldable charka was used by Gandhi during his famous Dandi Yatra. It was also believed that the same 'charka' was carried by Gandhi when he had gone to attend the Round Table Conference in London, according to Poduval, popularly known as Raghavji, Antony said.

Antony met Raghavji in 1965 when he was a teacher at the Gandhi Seva Sadan School near Ottapalam in Palakkad district. At that time Raghavji was staying in a Gandhi Ashram near Shornur.

The pinch of sand soaked by Gandhi's blood was collected from P P Nambiar of Thalassery, a retired subedar, who was on the spot when Gandhi was shot dead by Nathuram Vinayak Godse on January 30, 1948. Nambiar was part of the contingent guarding the residence of then British Governor General Lord Mountbatten. Shocked by what he had witnessed, Nambiar collected the pinch of soil where Gandhi's blood had spilled. Nambiar gave the blood-stained sand to Antony a few years back with a letter vouching its authenticity.

Among the Gandhi letters, three were addressed to Raghavji, another to his uncle Rama Poduval, who met the Mahatma first in Rangoon. Besides these unique objects, Antony has in his possession several copies of the journals Harijan (Hindiand English) and Young India edited by Gandhi.

An avid antique fan, Antony has in his collection several curious objects, many of them centuries old, like petromax light, different types of brass lamps, a kerozene fridge, executor's sword dating back to the princely days and archaic books, that had run out of print. "The emotional value of these articles are much beyond their material value. Looking at them, I get a feel of history... of the sacrifices made by the Mahatma, the fall of the mighty British empire and the changes that has occurred in the social and cultural approaches of the people," Antony added.