The statue of the tallest leader of India and Father of Nation Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Mahatma Gandhi) was cut off at the ankles and had the head sawed in half in Davis’ Central Park, California.
It was found on Wednesday (27 January) morning toppled and lying on the grass next to its plinth. The 6-foot-tall, 950-pound bronze likeness appeared to have been sawed off at the ankles and half its face was severed and missing.
Incidently today 30 January is Mahatma Gandhi’s death anniversary.
As per the media reports The statue was found after a night when wind and heavy rainfall knocked out power in much of downtown Davis. “City staff discovered vandalism to the statue of ‘Mahatma Gandhi’ in Central Park this morning while surveying storm damage,” Davis City Councilman Lucas Frerichs wrote Wednesday night in a Facebook comment.
“The statue is being removed and will be stored in a safe place until it can be evaluated.”
The bronze statue was gifted by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations and erected in Davis Central Park, California in 2016.
Hindu American Foundation’s (HAF) California Advocacy Director Easan Katir, a former member of the Davis Business and Finance Commission, in a statement said,
“We condemn this cowardly desecration and call upon the Department of Homeland Security and FBI to investigate this hate crime, as it was likely done with the intention of intimidating the Indian American community. We urge local police to apprehend the perpetrators and call upon the city council to resurrect the statue as a statement that such destructive acts are not in harmony with our community standards.”
This is not the first time Mahatma Gandhi’s statue is being targeted.
Last month on 12 December 2020, the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Washington DC’s Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Plaza in front of the Indian embassy was defaced.
