Word: dalmia
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Dates: during 1950-1959
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From Shekels to Sainthood. In his 57 years Dalmia has won for himself four wives, India's second largest industrial fortune and all the comforts that rupees can buy. About two years ago the tycoon's ambition began to shift from shekels to sainthood. In a frank autobiography Dalmia made it clear that he possessed unusual spiritual qualities: "I shall die peacefully with a smile on my face-an enviable state unattainable by ordinary...
Since a penchant for public confession is one of the most essential items of equipment for a would-be mahatma, Dalmia concentrated on owning up past misdeeds. He admitted that he had once been seized with passion for a distant female relative. "Shamelessly, I proposed a meeting to [my first wife] . . . She lost no time in getting friendly with the lady and persuaded her to agree to my beastly proposal." He admitted, too, that his business morality had been shaky: "I feel as if I had sucked the blood of the poor in establishing the big name of Dalmia...
...Reverence. Two weeks ago, in a newspaper statement, Dalmia reminded the public that he and other Indian industrialists had contributed heavily to the Gandhi Memorial Fund, one of the government's pet charity projects. "But," said Dalmia, "truly speaking, this was not pure charity . . . We gave . . . not because of reverence for the departed high soul, but because many of us were expecting that by so doing we would not be dragged into the sphere of action of the Income Tax Investigation Commission...
Many Indians found a disturbing plausibility in this statement, for some of the largest contributors to the Gandhi Memorial Fund are also widely suspected of being high on the government's list of 1,365 major tax evaders. Others were angry at Dalmia for having associated the memory of Mahatma Gandhi with anything so unsavory...
Angriest of all was Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who had been the Gandhi Fund's most persuasive agent among the industrialists. Last week Indian newspapers featured Patel's public reply to Dalmia. Said Patel: "If you will let me know what contributions you have made [I will return the money] and cleanse the fund from any taint which you have communicated to it . . . I do not see any possible connection between contribution to such a sacred object and escape from punishment for tax evasion...