suit (in picture above) auction, the Dalit
unit of Punjab Congress put a “poor man's suit”
on the block. The suit fetched Rs 61,000.
“We are going to use the maximum portion
of this sum in combating swine flu in Jalandhar,”
the chief ofthe unit said.
Surat, Feb. 19: The pinstripe is acting suitably pricey.
By the end of the second day of the auction, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's monogrammed suit had fetched Rs 1.41 crore, up from yesterday's highest bid of Rs 1.21 crore.
The man who quoted the highest bid today said he could revise his offer tomorrow - the auction's final day - to ensure that he gets the suit at any cost. "We buy gold and diamonds but this suit is unique," Kamal Sharma, a Bhavnagar-based businessman whose professional interests include trading in diamonds, a construction business and shipbreaking, said.
The day's first bid - of Rs 1.25 crore - came from Rajesh Maheshwari, a member of the Global Fans of Modi. Maheshwari, who runs a pre-primary school, plans to make good use of the suit Modi wore during Barack Obama's visit last month: charge Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 from those who want to take a "selfie" with it. "That is how we can utilise it for any noble cause," he said.
Maheshwari said the 250-odd active members of his group had decided to contribute Rs 50,000 each. "If they are willing to contribute more, we are going to make a higher bid tomorrow."
Mukesh Patel, a diamond trader and developer, then came up with a Rs 1.39-crore bid for the suit, embroidered with the Prime Minister's name countless times. "I am inspired by Modi and want to contribute towards cleaning the Ganga," Patel said, referring to the declared reason behind the auction. That was before Sharma came up with his Rs 1.41 crore bid.
Sources said the picture could change dramatically tomorrow. "I can tell with confidence that the suit will fetch more than Rs 3 crore. Everybody knows that whoever gets the suit will become famous," said Rohit Sharma, a local BJP leader. "And who doesn't want fame?"
