Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with party MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar, and others during the unveiling of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi, Karnataka, on January 21, 2025.

“Some BJP members keep alleging that Mahatma Gandhi was anti-Hindu. There is no truth in such allegations. He was a true Hindu. He sought reforms and eradication of social evils like untouchability and discrimination,” Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in Belagavi on January 21.

He was speaking at a ceremony to unveil a statue of Gandhiji in front of the Suvarna Soudha.

“Gandhiji was a true Hindu. He was always engaged in meditation and bhajan. Till his last breath, he was chanting the name of Lord Ram. Nathuram Ghodse, a man who was blinded by communal hatred, shot Gandhiji. Even then, Gandhiji said Hey Ram and died. There is no need for a better example to prove that he was a true Hindu,” the CM said. “We believe in the Hindutva as understood by Gandhiji. But the BJP does not believe in it. It believes in dividing the society on the basis of caste and religion.”

“Gandhiji sought reforms, but he was never anti-Hindu. He worked towards abolition of untouchability, empowering women and communal harmony. He wanted Hindus and Muslims to live as brothers. He not only helped us fight against British rule, but was also instrumental in shaping the post-independence government and system of governance. We should all be indebted to him,” he said.

“Most of our saints and reformers have opposed the caste discrimination and other social evils. Saints like Basavanna also fought against such social evils. All such ideals were included in the Constitution by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. While the Congress believes in the principles of the Constitution, the BJP is opposed to it. BJP has been trying to weaken the Constitution for several years. But we should not allow it. We should all protect the Constitution, and it will protect us. We should take the message of Gandhiji to the next generation. I hope the statue of Gandhiji will help us introspect and work towards an equal society,” the CM said.

“We will organise the Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan campaign with the aim of conveying Gandhiji’s ideas in a more meaningful way, and towards making Gandhiji’s dream of Gram Swaraj a reality,” he said.

Over 150 years ago, surgeon and politician William Crowther allegedly stole the skull of an Aboriginal leader, William Lanne, from a Hobart morgue. Today, the crime continues to spark debate in the city as the statue of Crowther, once towering over a central square, lies in ruins – its feet severed by vandals.

In the heart of Hobart, Tasmania, the bronze monument once stood over the oak-lined square. The statue, earlier, was cut down at the ankles, leaving only severed bronze feet behind, the BBC reported. The vandalism, along with the words “what goes around” spray-painted on its base, symbolised a larger struggle – a debate about colonialism, racism and the dark history of Tasmania’s treatment of its Aboriginal people. 

William Crowther’s notoriety stems from an event that took place over 150 years ago, when he allegedly broke into a morgue and mutilated the body of William Lanne, an Aboriginal leader. Lanne’s skull was stolen and later sent overseas as a trophy, which showed the colonisers’ view of Tasmanian Aboriginal people as extinct. Today, Lanne’s descendants and many in the Aboriginal community see Crowther as a symbol of colonial brutality and erasure.

William Lanne, often referred to as the last “full-blooded” Aboriginal Tasmanian, is a symbol of the tragic history of Tasmania’s Indigenous population and their mistreatment by British colonisers. Born around 1835, Lanne was part of the Palawa people, the original inhabitants of Tasmania (formerly Van Diemen’s Land). Lanne was forcibly removed from his homeland and lived through two notorious camps established to confine Aboriginal people. He is remembered as a shipmate and advocate for his people.

William Lanne, once thought to be the last Aboriginal man in Tasmania, became the subject of scientific exploitation. He died at the age of 34 in 1869 due to disease. Before his burial in 1869, parts of his body, including his hands, feet and skull, were stolen by physicians eager to study the so-called “missing link” between humans and Neanderthals. Though Crowther denied involvement, the scandal rocked the city at the time, leading to his suspension from the hospital.

For Aboriginal activists, like Nala Mansell, the statue of William Crowther represented not just a man but the false narrative that Aboriginal Tasmanians were wiped out. In contrast, some Hobart residents, including Crowther’s descendants, see him as a significant historical figure whose contributions should not be overshadowed by past misdeeds.