London: Some people campaigning in Britain tried to dispel the confusion created by the recent news about Mahatma Gandhi being depicted on a commemorative coin in the future. He said it was mistakenly linked to a separate campaign to represent ethnic minorities on Britain’s currency. The UK Finance Ministry confirmed that the commemorative coin for Gandhi has been in operation since October 2019, when former Chancellor Sajid Javid proposed it to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of India’s father. However, this is in no way linked to a separate campaign to give wider representation to ethnic minorities on the UK currency. Zehra Zaidi, head of the “We to Built Britain” campaign, said, “Legitimate currency is to honor those who have contributed to Britain’s society, culture or economy, not to any global figure.”
For example, when we have a picture of Churchill on the GBP5 currency, you have no suggestions for global leaders like JFK or Mandela. We have waited 400 years for the representation of ethnic minorities on the currency. The campaign was supported by Finance Minister Rishi Sunak over the weekend. Sunak revealed that he had written a letter to the royal mint to consider how to celebrate the contribution of ethnic minorities by placing them on Britain’s coinage. He said, “I know that Zehra Zaidi, Patrick Vernon and many others have been campaigning for BAME (Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities) people for years… ..”
Zaidi said that the royal mint is contemplating the issue of commemorative coinage on Gandhi, but Sunak’s letter specifically relates to his campaign for coins under the ‘service to the nation’ category to honor British historical figures. He said that now his campaign is gaining momentum towards honoring the heroines of military conflicts. Indian-origin British spy Noor Inayat Khan and the Crimean War heroine British Jamaican Mary Seacol are among the most powerful contenders since Sunak formally intervened last week. Zaidi, an activist and political activist of Indian origin, said, “Our focus for our campaign is to unite around the personalities of British history. Unity is now more important than ever, especially when we look at some differences online, the division we faced after Brexit. Let us move forward positively, acknowledging our contributions. “Others have also sought to dispel the misconception that Gandhi will be the first ethnic minority in Britain to get a special coin.
