Ramachandra Gandhi cremated

By IANS

New Delhi : Ramachandra Gandhi, a grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, was cremated Thursday with his daughter Leela performing the last rites.


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The 70-year-old philosopher-academician was found dead in a room at the India International Centre (IIC) Wednesday.

Ramu, as he was affectionately known among his associates, had Sunday checked in at the IIC, his second home for several years, to escape the gruelling heat amid power cuts at his Bengali market residence. Police said his death was natural.

The cremation took place at the Lodhi Road crematorium in the presence of his widow Indu, brothers Rajmohan and Gopalkrishna, sister Tara, niece Amrita and other family members.

Renowned historian Romila Thapar, art critic Kapila Vatsyayan, painter Jatin Das and his actress daughter Nandita Das, journalist Mark Tully, noted Gandhian Nirmala Deshpande and Prime Minister's media advisor Sanjaya Baru were also present at the funeral.

"It will be a long time before we fully realise the impact of his loss. He was such a genuine person," said Ramachandra Gandhi's sister Tara Bhattacharya, chairperson of Gandhi Smriti.

She recalled that he had told her just last week that he wanted to make at least one child happy a day.

"He was very spiritual and philosophical," she said.

Ramachandra was the second son of Devdas Gandhi, former editor of The Hindustan Times who was married to the daughter of independent India's second governor general C. Rajgopalachari.

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