The Ministry of Culture announced on Sunday, June 18, that the 2021 Gandhi Peace Prize would be awarded to Gita Press in Gorakhpur. The decision was taken by a jury headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Gita Press was established in 1923 and is one of the largest publishers of Hindu religious texts. According to the publisher’s website, the main objective of Gita Press is “to promote and spread the principles of Sanatana Dharma, the Hindu religion among the general public by publishing Gita, Ramayana, Upanishads, Puranas, and other character-building books and magazines at highly subsidised prices.”

Announcing the award, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the publisher for doing “commendable work over the last 100 years.” He said, “I congratulate Gita Press, Gorakhpur, on being conferred the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021. They have done commendable work over the last 100 years towards furthering social and cultural transformations among the people.”

A press release stated that the Gita Press had been conferred the award for its “outstanding contribution towards social, economic, and political transformation through non-violent and Gandhian methods.”

I congratulate Gita Press, Gorakhpur on being conferred the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021. They have done commendable work over the last 100 years towards furthering social and cultural transformations among the people. @GitaPress https://t.co/B9DmkE9AvS

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 18, 2023

The Gandhi Peace Prize is an award that was constituted in 1995 on Mahatma Gandhi’s 125th birth anniversary, by the then Narasimha Rao government. The award is meant to recognize the works of those who promote Gandhian values and is open to all individuals and organisations, regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or gender.

But Gita Press has refused to accept the prize money of Rs 1 crore that comes with the award. According to reports, the publishers said that they will accept the award but the government could put it to better use by spending the cash component somewhere else.

Despite its seeming generosity, the Gandhi Peace award winner has invited flak for “promoting communalism”. The Modi government has also been slammed for its choice.

MP and General Secretary of Communications in the Congress Jairam Ramesh called the decision a “travesty and is like awarding Savarkar and Godse.” He said, “The Gandhi Peace Prize for 2021 has been conferred on the Gita Press at Gorakhpur which is celebrating its centenary this year. There is a very fine biography from 2015 of this organisation by Akshaya Mukul, in which he unearths the stormy relations it had with the Mahatma and the running battles it carried on with him on his political, religious and social agenda. The decision is really a travesty and is like awarding Savarkar and Godse.”

The book by Akshaya Mukul titled Gita Press and the Making of Hindu India delves into the history of the Gita Press and how they were at the forefront of opposing the Hindu Code Bill, and forming ‘the Hindu’ position on cow slaughter, Hindi as the national language, and the creation of Pakistan.

An excerpt from the book that was published in The Wire stated that the editor of Gita Press’s flagship magazine Kalyan, Hanuman Prasad Poddar “opposed Gandhi through Kalyan, (though) privately he respected the Mahatma.” After the assassination of Gandhi in January 1948, around 25,000 people associated with the Hindu Mahasabha were arrested, including Poddar and his mentor Jaydal Goyandka. Private autobiographical material of Poddar’s referred to Gandhi’s assassination “in a muted tone” and called it “an unfortunate incident” while his official autobiography made no reference to the death. The excerpt also noted that Gita Press maintained silence on Gandhi’s assassination. Even Kalyan made no mention of Gandhi for two months after his death, despite Poddar’s avowed admiration for the leader. Poddar was also involved in defending the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) after it was banned in February 1948 for its alleged role in Gandhi’s assassination.

The Gandhi Peace Prize for 2021 has been conferred on the Gita Press at Gorakhpur which is celebrating its centenary this year. There is a very fine biography from 2015 of this organisation by Akshaya Mukul in which he unearths the stormy relations it had with the Mahatma and the… pic.twitter.com/PqoOXa90e6

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) June 18, 2023

According to a Caravan article written by Akshaya Mukul, Kalyan also played an important role in opposing the Hindu Code Bill. The magazine not only expressed opposition to the Bill but also called for its readers to protest against it. Arguing against the payment of compensation to the wife after she has separated from her husband, Poddar’s mentor Jaydal Goyandka wrote, “independence was not promised to women in the Hindu social structure.” He further said that laws that will legalise divorces and inter-caste marriage will not “empower women but would make them morally depraved.” Kalyan had also targeted BR Ambedkar, who was the law minister, when the Hindu Code Bill was taken up again in 1948. An article from the magazine also made casteist remarks against Ambedkar for demanding equal rights for marginalised communities.