Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi's one worldly possession was an Ingersoll ‘Turnip’ pocket watch, which he wore tied on a string (somewhere along, he must have lost the chain, if it had one) around his waist, hidden between the folds of his dhoti. As he bent down or stopped, the watch would spring free to dangle to reflect the setting suns rays. This one sight has been recorded by many journalists and biographers. But would somebody be interested in knowing more about that watch?
For Gandhiji himself, the watch was important. In some ways it dictated every aspect of his wakeful life. As he sat, even while at the ashram, the gold plated pocket watch was propped up in front of him, in his line of vision. He was always very punctual and hated being late or others coming late after a time had been agreed upon.
How important was his watch to him? The answer appears in the marvelous book by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins – Freedom at Midnight. The scene is Feb 1947 and it was a nervous Viceroy Mountbatten’s first interview with Gandhiji. When the Mahatma arrived, he appeared profoundly unhappy. Mountbatten thought ‘Have we done something wrong? Oh! What a terrible way to start things? When asked is something was wrong, a slow sigh escaped the Indian leader. He said ‘They stole my watch; someone in the railway compartment coming down to Delhi stole my watch’. Mountbatten saw tears in the frail man’s eyes. But it was not probably the loss of the 8 shilling watch that hurt Gandhiji, but the loss of faith. Anyway, just six months later, in Sept 1947, a stranger who refused to provide his name asked to meet Gandhiji at Birla House, Delhi. He stated that he was the man who had stolen Gandhiji’s watch and he wanted to be forgiven. The man was taken to Gandhiji and they chatted for some time in low tones. Then Gandhiji embraced him and giggling like a child who had recovered a lost toy, called his followers to show the watch and meet the prodigal son who had returned it!!
Gandhiji’s watch, the watch termed very unreliable by users of that era, served him to the very end. Let us now look at the last minutes of his life Earlier in the day someone had shown Gandhiji a clipping from the London Times, an article suggesting that the conflict between Nehru and Patel was irreconcilable. He was determined to put an end to the disunity between them, even if it meant delaying his journey to Sevagram. While the conversation continued he took his evening meal. It was now past 5 p.m., but Gandhi did not notice that he was late for the prayer meeting. Abha behn, the young wife of Kanu Gandhi, grandson of the Mahatma's cousin, held up the watch, but neither Gandhi nor Patel paid any attention. After sometime Patel's daughter reminded them that it was ten minutes past five and that Gandhi had been late for his prayer meeting, whereupon the two men rose.
As he made his way to the prayer meeting, supported by Manu and Abha, whom he called his "walking-sticks", he complained: "I am late by ten minutes. I hate being late. I like to be at the prayer punctually at the stroke of five."
They were probably his last words, not ‘Hey Raam’, as is the popular myth…
Others report the last conversation more in detail as follows - Gandhiji was upset for the delay and said to them, "You are my watches, why should I consult a watch? I do not like this delay at all. I cannot tolerate even one minute's delay for prayers."Abha and Manu teasedGandhi for neglecting his watch and his timekeepers both. "It is your fault that I am 10 minutes late," he responded. "It is the duty of nurses to carry on their work even if God himself should be present there. If it is time to give medicine to a patient and you hesitate, the poor patient may die. I hate it if I am late for prayers even by a minute.”At about 5:16, Godse shot Gandhi three times with his Beretta, after greeting him.Gandhi's frail body slowly sank to the ground beside Manu, his hands still frozen in namaste as if he was greeting his assassin. In between the folds of the blood-soaked dhoti, which Gandhi was wearing, drops of blood had fallen on Gandhi's favorite eight-shilling Ingersoll watch. The watch stopped on impact with the ground, and showed the time, for the last time: 5.17 p.m. remaining the most reliable witness of the assassination. It would not serve its master or any other, anymore.
