Centre trying to acquire Gandhi's letters to German pal

NEW DELHI: A collection of Mahatma Gandhi's hitherto unknown letters to his German friend Hermann Kallenbach could come into public domain if negotiations with his family bear fruit. The collection also includes letters written by Gandhi's secretary Mahadev Desai to Kallenbach and a large number of photographs.

An Indian government team consisting of officials from the culture ministry and the Indian embassy in Tel Aviv has been negotiating with Kallenbach's family in Haifa, Israel. "Negotiations have been going on for long but the right price has not yet been decided," said one source associated with the development.

The private papers of Kallenbach are with his niece Isa Sarid and her family. "It's a big collection," says historian Ramchandra Guha, who saw the collection last year. Later, historian Sunil Khilnani also saw the collection and even gave a report to the government that it was outstanding and should be acquired. But sources say the problem so far has been that while Kallenbach's niece is in favour of passing on Gandhi's letters at a moderate price, members of her family are driving a hard bargain. The latter feel that a better price can come through auction.