Misleading Claims About Gandhi Getting Personal Allowance In Prison Revived

FactCheck

BOOM had debunked similar misleading claims when they were viral in 2023. At that time, we found the scanned version of the viral letter in the national archives portal (page 51). After a thorough reading, BOOM did not find any indication of Gandhi receiving this allowance of Rs 100 directly. In the archives section on the website Indian Culture, we found a document from 5 May 1930 stating, "An allowance of one hundred rupees per mensem is sanctioned for the maintenance of Mr. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. This allowance should be remitted to the Superintendent of the Yeravada Central Prison." This clarifies that the sum was not directly received by Gandhi. Historian Ramachandra Guha also told BOOM that the then Bombay Government requested the Government of India to bear the additional expenses they are incurring on account of keeping a major political figure like Gandhi in prison after the Salt March through the letter. Among Gandhi's archived letters on Gandhi Heritage Portal we found a letter, dated 10 May 1930, addressed to E.E. Doyle, Inspector-General of Prisons of Bombay Presidency, where Gandhi states that he "must avoid, as much as possible, the special privileges offered" to him by the government."