Gandhi Jayanti celebration returns to China’s Chaoyang Park after 2 years

Two years after the Covid halted life in China, Gandhi Jayanti was celebrated at the Chaoyang Park on Sunday.

After a two-year Covid-induced hiatus, Gandhi Jayanti celebrations returned to China's sprawling Chaoyang Park here as it resonated with the recitation of his famous quotes by Chinese school children and his bhajans by members of the Indian diaspora.

Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated every year at the picturesque Chaoyang Park in Beijing ever since the statue of Gandhi, sculpted by acclaimed sculptor Yuan Xikun, was installed in 2005 on the banks of a lake amid serene surroundings to enable his admirers to pay tributes to the Mahatma.

Yuan besides being an acclaimed sculptor, who sculpted the statues of famous Chinese and world leaders, is also well connected with the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) and the long-time Curator of the famous Jin Tai Art Museum located in the Chaoyang park.

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Yuan carved out the Gandhi statue with a unique posture of the Mahatma sitting with a book in his hand.

The installation of Gandhi’s statue for the first time officially in Beijing was regarded as politically significant as for decades the Mahatma, a contemporary of Mao Zedong who led China’s national liberation movement, has remained an enigma in China as the two leaders professed contrasting political philosophies.

While Mao remained a firm advocate of violent liberation movements with his famous dictum that power flows through the barrel of the gun, Gandhi’s successful non-violent movement against the British, in contrast, caught the attention of the world.