Astronaut Sunita Williams may have won the hearts of children at the Sabarmati Ashram during her interaction on Thursday but her not paying homage at the `Hriday Kunj', where the Father of the Nation had lived, has not gone down well with some Gandhians.
"It is an insult to Mahatma Gandhi if a guest of Sunita William's stature visits the place and does not pay homage at the 'Hriday Kunj', garland Bapu's statue and mention his or her experience in the visitors' book," Hemant Chauhan, a Gandhian, told PTI after the function organised to felicitate Williams, whose father is from Gujarat, was over.
"It is the fault of the organisers and the Sabarmati Harijan Ashram Trust," said 43-year-old Chauhan who is leading a court battle against certain land dealings connected to the Ashram.
The NASA-trained astronaut of Indian origin entered the 90-year-old Ashram premises and her car was led up to the dais by police escort.
She attended the 45-minute-long function and left the premises without visiting the `Hriday Kunj' located just behind the stage erected for the function.
The organisers of the function -- the National Federation of Indian Americans -- were not available for a comment on the issue.