PM Narendra Modi condoles demise of scholar Narayanbhai Desai

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condoled the demise of Narayanbhai Desai. "Narayanbhai Desai will be remembered as a scholarly personality who brought Gandhi ji closer to the masses. Sad to hear of his demise. Rest in Peace," he said.

Narayan Desai, the son of Mahatma Gandhi's personal secretary and biographer Mahadev Desai, breathed his last early this morning at a private hospital in Surat. He was 90 years old.

Desai was accorded the Sahitya Akademi Award for Gujarati in 1993 for the biography of his father Mahadev Desai he wrote as part of the centenary celebrations of Gandhi's close aide. Earlier, Desai's book about his childhood reminiscences of Gandhi too had won the Sahitya Academy Award.

He was awarded the Jamnalal Bajaj Award in 1999 and the UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence in 1998 for his tireless work in favour of the promotion of inter-religious and inter-ethnic understanding, tolerance and harmony and his achievements in the education and training for non-violence and peace, as well as anti-nuclear activism.

He also received Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak, the highest award of Gujarati literature, in 2001.

Desai won the 18th Moortidevi Award for the year 2004, given by Bharatiya Jnanpith, for his famous work 'Maroon Jeewan Aj Mari Vaani', which is based upon the life, philosophy and work of Mahatma Gandhi.