PTI
New Delhi, Aug 6: Ever since the Mahatma’s letter which was to be put under the hammer at an auction house in London sparked off a controversy, a collection of Gandhi memorabilia has found its way to Internet auction sites.
E-bay, an Internet auction site has hordes of Gandhi’s memorabilia up on sale. It not only has his pictures on the postcard selling for minimum Rs 10 but also a leather watch with his face embossed on the dial selling for a whopping Rs 2 lakh. A buyer can choose anything depending on his interest and his purchasing power.
Soon after his assassination, Gandhi’s topi (cap) had become a craze for many Indians, but lately T-shirts with his picture printed on them and coffee mugs with his slogan have become popular.
Even funny pictures like Gandhi grinning while being escorted by two detectives in Folkestone are now receiving a number of queries from buyers. Even Rs 2 currency notes bearing Gandhi’s pictures are now being sold for 100 times more than its original value.
“Gandhi memorabilia have now become popular. I had bought 3000 sets of 1969 Gandhi stamps which are no longer available in India. I have now sold most of them online,” says Amit Chowdhury, Stampex, a Kolkata based group selling old stamps on the Net.
The demand for Gandhi stamps come from a number of other countries too and not just India,” he adds. Chowdhury says that it is not just the stamps, which are in demand but also folders and articles related to him.