BJP faces media poser on Gandhi's photo on currency notes

Defending the move by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) to have pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on its New Year calendar, the BJP on Friday found itself answering a query on whether the ubiquitous photo of Mahatma Gandhi could also be replaced in currency notes.

The poser came during a press conference held by Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Sambit Patra in the wake of opposition parties targeting the government on the KVIC decision to replace Gandhi's picture with that of the Prime Minister.

Reeling out some statistics, Patra said that the KVIC was "technically not bound to print only Gandhi's picture on its calendars and diaries" as there is no such provision in KVIC rules.

A reporter then asked if Mahatma Gandhi's photo on currency notes can also be dropped as there is no compulsion of printing it as per laws of the Reserve Bank of India.

"Gandhiji is our soul. Nobody can replace him," Patra said.

IANS on Thursday reported about Modi's picture spinning the charkha donning the cover page of the KVIC calendar and dairy, instead of the iconic picture of Gandhi weaving khadi on a simple charkha, wearing his trademark loin cloth.

Opposition parties including the Congress, Left, the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party were unanimous in slamming the move, asserting the "Father of the Nation" was "irreplaceable".

--IANS

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