At the Gandhi ashram, PM Modi played the guide to Donald Trump and helped him garland a photograph of the Mahatma.
US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump made Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad their first stop in Gujarat, garlanded a photograph of Mahatma Gandhi and tried his hand at his charkha, or spinning wheel.
At the end of the brief stopover at the ashram where the visiting US President spent about 15 minutes, Trump also left behind an unusual message in the ashram’s visitor’s register: “To my great friend Prime Minister Modi, Thank you for the wonderful visit”.
The ashram was a last-minute addition to President Trump’s itinerary in Gujarat where he has been welcomed to a grand roadshow. President Trump has, however, travelled in the Beast, the heavily armoured presidential limousine that has run on flat tires in case of an attack. PM Modi, who received him at the airport with a warm hug and a handshake, is travelling in his Range Rover.
At the Gandhi ashram, PM Modi played the guide to Donald Trump and helped him garland a photograph of the Mahatma.
He later invited them to try their hand at the charkha, the hand spinning wheel that has symbolised India’s quest for self-reliance during the freedom struggle. Trump was the first one to try as he sat on a low bench, Melania joined him moments later. At one point, PM Modi guided them with the spinning wheel. Later an ashram official helped the Trumps and detailed the significance of the wheel.
The visiting dignitaries left for Motera Stadium soon after.
Moments before they reached the brand-new cricket stadium, the largest in the world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted photographs of Trump’s welcome at the airport. Accompanying the photographs was his welcome message to the Trumps.
The foreign ministry underlined that Donald Trump’s 36-hour travel to India was the first stand-alone visit by a US President ever that it exemplifies “a historic relationship that has matured into a 21-century global partnership”.
President Trump is the third foreign dignitaries over the last few years to hold a roadshow in Gujarat. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, however, was the only one to travel in an open jeep. Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, quite like President Trump, had stayed in his armoured vehicle through the roadshow due to security concerns.
