Page 15 - seniors today August issue
P. 15
Bhai Pratap with Acharya Kripalani emersing Gandhiji’s ashes in Kandla waters
– Parsi and Sindhi. Although Bhai Pratap was the migrants of West Pakistan. But when he
the first to get an Honourable Pardon from the needed help to fight the fraudulent corruption
Government of India, it was delayed to coincide case against him no one came forward to help
with Nanavati’s pardon so that both Parsis and him – high-powered leaders (like Rajendra
Sindhis could be mollified at the same time. Prasad, Jawaharlal Nehru and others) were
Ram Jethmalani played a stellar role in making too busy in the politics of new India, forgetting
Father’s as well as Nanavati’s pardon actually the paramount role father played in funding
materialise. But he made it very clear – Bhai them and giving them shelter and resources
Pratap was an innocent man, unjustly accused during the struggle.
and then honourably acquitted, but Nanavati Senior journalist Bachi Karkaria, writing in
was a self-proclaimed criminal who spent Ahmedabad Mirror, has called Bhai Pratap
several years in jail before getting his freedom. “Kandla’s Unsung Hero”, who has been given
“Bhai’s pardon was superior – it wholly little or no recognition for building Kandla
destroyed the stigma of guilt and conferred the Port which has now been renamed as Deen
rewardof total innocence on him. Nanavati was Dayal Port. She has said, “Today the port
shown mercy on the basis of Mamie Ahuja’s is one of the richest in the country and part
reference to the guilt of her brother being an of a special economic zone – the first of its
exonerating factor for him”. kind in Asia. However, there’s hardly any
It has been widely quoted today, that Bhai acknowledgment that this was due to Bhai
Pratap was not given enough recognition for Pratap’s vision.”
the stellar work done by him straight after
Partition, in the building of the tri-city and port.
He had also worked tirelessly for the freedom
struggle in Sindh and in independent India for
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