Feroze Gandhis grave is just a few kilometres from Anand Bhawan, the original seat of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. Dozens of tourists come daily to get a glimpse of the carefully preserved bedrooms and belongings of Pandit Nehru and Indira Gandhi at Anand Bhawan, Moti Lal Nehrus gracious mansion with its well manicured lawns. A book store offers a selection of pamphlets, comics and biographies on Indias premiere political family. But no one comes to place flowers at the neglected tombstone of the man who gave the Gandhis their surname. Some of Ferozes progeny have never visited the cemetery where Indira Gandhis Parsi husband has his ashes interred. In fact long time residents of Allahabad are unaware of the grave site. Ferozes tombstone is in one corner of Allahabads Parsi cemetery, which has clearly seen better days. The garden has gone to seed, the weeds have got the better of the grass, the flower beds are empty and the soil cracked and parched. The cemeterys boundary wallis crumbling and pavement squatters are merrily drying cowdung cakes on the outer side. The gardener in charge says that the only member of Indira Gandhis family whom he recalls ever visiting the grave is Maneka Gandhi who came once many years back. According to Parsi custom bodies are either eaten by the vultures in places where there are dakmoos (towers of silence) or else buried. But in Feroze Gandhis case it seems some members of his family placed his ashes in the grave evoking protest from orthodox Parsies, since Parsi bodies are not cremated. Rustom Gandhi -- Ferozes eldest brother Fardiuns son -- is the only member of Ferozes family still living in Allahabad. He is philosophical about his uncles neglected grave, pointing out that the Parsi Anjuman society in Allahabad tries its best to maintain the cemetery, which he feels is in better condition than graveyards in many small towns.. There are only some 30 Parsies left in Allahabad. Families like the Gazdars and Shapurjees are extinct,others have migrated because the younger generation found employment opportunities elsewhere.. The old gardener who used to tend the cemetery is dead; his son looks after the grounds perfunctorily. If the graveyard looks neglected it is not so much because of lack of funds, but because the local authorities have been indifferent to several letters of complaint from the Parsi community that the neighbouring junk dealers jump over the wall and have been attempting to grab the land. Nobody prevents the walls being used for spreading cow dung. ``We are such a small community that no political party bothers about us and considers us a vote bank, Rustom says ruefully. He points out that Mulayam Singh Yadav, the former Chief Minister, had the huge old Christian cemetery fenced in at considerable government expense because the community has a substantial number of votes. But Allahabads Parsies keep raising the height of the cemetery wall on their own to keep intruders out. Does Indira Gandhis family keepin touch with their Parsi relatives?
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 14:55:45 +0000
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