PM Modi witnesses exhibition on Gandhi in Kazan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday witnessed an exhibition on Mahatma Gandhi, which was put up on the occasion of his visit to Kazan.

Modi arrived in this central Russian city to attend the 16th BRICS summit.

"PM @narendramodi witnessed an exhibition on Mahatma Gandhi put up on the occasion of his visit to Kazan. The exhibition, among other things, highlighted the Mahatma’s engagement with Leo Tolstoy. The exhibition bears special significance as Leo Tolstoy lived and studied in Kazan for several years," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on X.

Count Leo Tolstoy, a Russian noble, and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi were the two greatest leaders who preached non-violence, universal love, concern for the weakest, a moral stance in whatever we do, and a non-violent resolution of conflicts among individuals, and groups, as well as nations.

Gandhi was inspired by Tolstoy not only in respect of non-violence and non-violent resistance but also by his idea of 'Bread Labour' and its concomitant idea of 'getting off the backs' of others including the poor, according to an Astha Bharati quarterly journal "Dialogue".

He developed Tolstoy's theory of 'Bread Labour' into a full-fledged theory of the duty and right to work.