The first family of the United States, who visited the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad on Monday, laid a wreath and paid floral tributes at the memorial located on the banks of the Yamuna river in the national capital.
US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat after being accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday.
The first family of the United States, who visited the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad on Monday, laid a wreath and paid floral tributes at the memorial located on the banks of the Yamuna river in the national capital.
“The American people stand strongly with a sovereign and wonderful INDIA — The vision of the great Mahatma Gandhi — This is a Tremendous Honour,” Donald Trump wrote in the visitor’s book at the memorial during the visit.
Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri, who accompanied the Trumps to Rajghat, gifted them a bust of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Trumps also planted a tree at Rajghat.
On Monday, Trump had referred to the proposed visit to Rajghat in his speech at Ahmedabad’s Motera stadium that sought to underscore the deep partnership between the two countries.
“The First Lady and I have just had a pleasure of visiting Mahatma Gandhi’s Ashram, a few miles from here, where he launched the famous “Salt March….And tomorrow in Delhi, we will lay a wreath, plant a tree at Raj Ghat in honor of this leader who is revered all around the world,” he told the 1 lakh-strong audience in Gujarat.
The Trumps reached Rajghat after a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, where Donald Trump was welcomed with a gun salute. The welcome ceremony included hundreds of military officials, marching with instruments and swords.
Prasanta Patnaik