A pioneer of mass movement, yet still a rookie in India politics, Mahatma Gandhi visited Kumbh in 1918 to galvanise the masses and to know better the people of his country which was still governed by the British.

Mahatma Gandhi, whose death anniversary on Thursday was observed as the Martyrs' Day, saw the mega gathering a perfect place to make a call for unity to his fellow compatriots.

"He did see Maha Kumbh as a medium to motivate and unite the masses for the freedom struggle," said Dhananjai Chopra, Course Coordinator, Centre of Media Studies, University of Allahabad.

"Mahatma Gandhi perhaps understood that the Maha Kumbh represents a mini-India and has the potential to inspire Indians from all regions and to unite them to fight for their freedom from the British. This realisation led him to attend the Prayag Kumbh Mela in 1918," Chopra told PTI.

Kumbh was seen as a natural place for the freedom fighters, leaders, revolutionaries, journalists, and writers to meet the masses, he said.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869, in Gujarat's Porbandar. He was assassinated on January 30, 1948, in Delhi by Hindu fundamentalist Nathuram Godse. His ashes were immersed in Triveni Sangam in February 1948.

Chopra said records kept in the Regional State Archives indicate that British officers documented Mahatma Gandhi's presence at the Prayag Kumbh Mela in 1918 through intelligence reports.

"During his Maha Kumbh visit, he engaged in interactions with numerous individuals, participated in rituals at the Sangam and took a dip in the Ganga," Chopra added.

According to a write-up by Chopra on the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' website, Mahatma Gandhi had, in a public meeting in Faizabad on February 10, 1921, mentioned his Kumbh Mela visit. The article also said that he originally had plans to visit Ayodhya, but could not.

All the same, Bapu was "pretty disappointed" by the filth he saw at the Kumbh, his great grandson Tushar Gandhi told PTI.

"He was pretty disappointed on noticing filth and lack of personal hygiene among visitors. He thought that purity of such events could be maintained only when people were disciplined," Bapu's grandson said.

"Bapu's ashes were taken to Allahabad (now called Prayagraj), and on February 12, 1948, they were immersed in Triveni Sangam. Later, I found another urn containing his ashes in the State Bank of India in Odisha. After a Supreme Court order, I, along with my family, immersed them at Triveni Sangam on January 30, 1998," he said.

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