Lithuania will unveil the statue of Mahatma Gandhi a few hundred metres from the Russian border.
Lithuanian PM Algirdas Butkevicius and Gandhi’s grandson and former governor of West Bengal, Gopal Krishna Gandhi, will unveil to the world a statue of friendship between Gandhi and Jewish architect’s enclave of Kaliningrad in Russia and the village of Rusne in western Lithuanian.
The Russian Enclave of Kaliningrad and the village of Rusne in western Lithuanian with a meagre population of 3000 people face each other and are divided by a narrow stretch of a local river.
Kallenbach was born in Rusne. The local municipality officials have chosen a spot right next to the river and by a historic Jewish synagogue to install the monument. It is expected to become a major tourist draw besides spreading Gandhi’s doctrine of non-violence.
About Hermann Kallenbach
- Hermann Kallenbach (1 March 1871 – 25 March 1945)
- He was a German born Jewish South African architect
- He was one of the foremost friends and associates of Mahatma Gandhi.
- Kallenbach was introduced to the young Mohandas Gandhi while they were both working in South Africa and, after a series of discussions, they developed a long-lasting friendship.
