Aga Khan Palace: The Crematorium of Kasturba Gandhi
If Raj Ghat in Delhi represents Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial, Aga Khan Palace in Pune represents his better half’s crematorium. On February 22nd, 1944, Kasturba Gandhi took her last breath in this palace while Mahatma Gandhi read the Gita by her side. During the Quit India Movement, both Bapu and Ba were imprisoned and held at the Aga Khan Palace until Kasturba Gandhi passed away in eternal peace.
As a result, this stately structure commemorates a significant historical event from India’s pre-independence era. As much as the Aga Khan Palace in Pune symbolises India’s freedom struggle, the 19-acre property was originally built by Sultan Muhammed Shah Aga Khan III to help the poor of Western India. This late-eighteenth-century design eventually became India’s most important landmark.
However, in the eighteenth century, this Palace housed Maharashtra famine victims, and later in the nineteenth century, it was used by the British government as a detention centre for freedom fighters. Anyhow, the Aga Khan is a marvellous architectural marvel that served as both a charity centre and a prison for the Indian freedom movement, earning it the status of a national monument.
During the freedom movement, Mahatma Gandhi, his wife, and his secretary were detained at Aga Khan Palace is now the Gandhi National Memorial. The prison cell where Bapu was held is now a museum with his clothes, utensils, letters, and photographs from his time there on display.
The sprawling lawns and exemplary arches of this palace ignite a fresh breeze of perspective, as depressing as the historic events may sound. This place served as the National Model School until 1970 when it was transformed into a prison. In the present day, this palace has memorials to both Mahatma and Kasturba Gandhi in the back garden. Following independence, the palace was presented, to Indian citizens as a tribute to Gandhi’s nonviolence philosophies.
Although the Palace’s condition had deteriorated by 1998 due to the negligence of the managing authorities, it was only after a protest in Pune in 1999 that the government decided to renovate the damaged sections. The first floor of the building is still closed to visitors because it houses old furniture and goods that have been vandalised. Regardless, a trip to Pune isn’t complete until you’ve seen a national monument.
