Bapu beckons blasts accused, 17 to take tests on Mahatma

AHMEDABAD: Mahatma Gandhi's life seems to have attracted attention of the 2008 serial blasts accused in Sabarmti Central Jail. Seventeen of 50-odd implicated in this case and lodged in jail here have applied to take tests on Gandhi's life and autobiography.
Organizers of the exams said that against almost half of the blast accused that stay in Sabarmati prison, there is none from the lot of over 100 convicts in the 2002 riots who has come forward to appear in tests on Gandhi.
Navjeevan Trust, a publishing house founded by Gandhi, has entered into an agreement with the jail authorities to carry out certain activities which could help prisoners in their rehabilitation process once they serve their sentence. It has decided to hold three tests on Gandhi for prisoners having various education qualifications. Those who have studied up to class 7 will take a primary test on 'Gandhi Bapu'. Those having cleared 10th standard can take test on 'Mari Jivan Katha', and for those who have completed schooling, the exam is on Gandhi's Autobiography.
Navjeevan has received 649 applications, of which 296 are convicts and 24 women prisoners. Interestingly, there are 17 applications from 20 Number Kholi, where serial blasts accused are kept. Safdar Nagori, Amil Parvaz, Sajid Mansuri, Sami Bagewadi, Abbas Sameja and Shakeel Mali are some of applicants. This group is one of the most educated lots among all applicants, though there are doctors who are also to take these exams that will be held on November 15.
The organization's managing trustee, Vivek Desai said, "We have got an overwhelming response in our first effort. We will see how it goes. Later, we will think of replicating this exercise in other jails of Gujarat."
Though Navjeevan offered to give exam in any Indian language as Gandhi's Autobiography has been translated in all scheduled languages, it will be held in four languages because the prisoners have opted for Gujarati, Hindi, English and Urdu languages. Forty-one prisoners will take the test in English, 92 will write in Hindi, seven in Urdu and the rest will take tests in Gujarati. Navjeevan has supplied books to these prisoners.