Iconic Gandhi statue defaced in London: ‘Not just vandalism, but a violent attack,’ India reacts

The High Commission of India in London has condemned the vandalism of an iconic statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Tavistock Square in London, near a university campus.

Officials from India outrightly labelled this as a “violent attack on the idea of nonviolence,” given Gandhi’s nonviolent path of resistance during the British colonial era.

As if the act of desecrating the late Indian leader’s statue was already an outrageous move, what particularly troubled the HCI in London was that the incident took place merely days before October 2, aka ‘Gandhi Jayanti’ or the birth anniversary of the ‘Father of the Nation.’ On top of that, the United Nations has even designated the date as the International Day of Non-Violence.

High Commission of India in London condemns Gandhi statue vandalism

“@HCI_London is deeply saddened and strongly condemns the shameful act of vandalism of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Tavistock Square in London,” read the statement on X. “This is not just vandalism, but a violent attack on the idea of nonviolence, three days before the international day of nonviolence, and on the legacy of the Mahatma.”

The official response further highlighted that the HCI London branch had taken up the issue with local authorities for immediate action. The Indian team also reached the site to restore the “statue to its original dignity.”

Gandhi statue vandalised near London university: What happened

The bronze Mahatma Gandhi statue sculpted by artist Fredda Brilliant has long been a symbolic gesture alluding to the Indian freedom fighter’s own identity as a law student at the University College London. It bears the inscription: “Mahatma Gandhi, 1869-1948.”

However, this week, the decades-old installation was graffitied with disturbing anti-India comments like “Gandhi-Modi Hindustani Terrorists.” Even the fours steps leading up to the statue’s plinth were marred by the same troubling remarks.

The Gandhi statue vandalism comes months after pro-Khalistani demonstrators swarmed to protest External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s visit to the United Kingdom near the Chatham House. At the time, the crowd shouted slogans, as they came bearing flags representative of the separatist agenda.

The Indian Government ultimately condemned the “provocative activities” exhibited by the group of separatists and extremists, while also deploring “misuse of democratic freedoms” in a statement.