A search is on for a suitable sculptor after the Leicester City Council gave its approval to install a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in the multicultural city, ending months of contentious campaign and debate over the merits of the issue. ( Watch: UK opts for Gandhi over Linekar )
The council planning committee met on Tuesday evening and after a presentation by officials on all aspects of the issue, the approval was given.
There was no debate at the meeting on the merits of having Gandhi's statue, a council spokesperson said. She added that as per rules, the statue will need to be installed within three years of the approval.
The 3.8 metre statue is to be located off Belgrave Road, the nerve-centre of commercial and cultural activities of people of Gujarat origin. Leicester has a high British Asian population, and is predicted to be Britain's first white-minority city in 12 years.
Leicester has a large minority of Gujarat origin, many of whom moved here after the expulsions in Uganda in the early 1970s.
For several months, Gandhi was pitted against local heroes such as footballer Gary Lineker and DNA inventor Sir Alec Jeffreys, and supporters and opponents of Gandhi's statue debated its merits.
Several online and public petitions were signed, while the campaign also reached the House of Commons in the form of an early day motion.
However, the council spokesperson said the planning committee meeting did not debate the issue of whose statue should be installed, but only decided on the planning application made by the community group.
The cost of the statue, 20,000 pounds, will be met by the Samanvaya Parivar, a charity organisation. The group has been asked to earmark separate funds for the maintenance of the statue.
Campaign's lead supporter, Goa-origin Labour MP from Leicester East Keith Vaz expressed his delight at the council's decision, and said Gandhi's statue is a fitting reflection of Leicester's achievements in multiculturalism.
The campaign for the statue also received the backing of Lord Richard Attenborough, better known for the Oscar-winning film, 'Gandhi'.
General secretary of Samanvaya Parivar Jitendra Acharya said: "We have never said that there should not be any other statues in Leicester. This particular statue of Gandhi will be entirely funded by our charity as a gift to the city.
"It will add to the vibrant and multicultural elements of this city since Gandhi's philosophies of truth, peace and non-violence had no boundaries."
Vaz said Gandhi's "philosophy of brotherhood among those of different religions and ethnicity should be honoured and celebrated", and added, "a statue (of Gandhi) will be an excellent symbol of his and Leicester's commitment to diversity."
Leicester city council's leader councillor Ross Willmott said:"Gandhi was a person whose teachings transcended any particular nation or faith. His teaching and way of life showed us peace and non-violent protest can change the world.
"I would be proud to see a statue in our city that was a reminder to us all of his philosophy of peace." Gandhi's statue has also been installed in the Tavistock Square, central London, while the south-western port city of Bristol has honoured Indian social reformer Raja Rammohun Roy in the form of a statue in a prominent location.
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