PM Narendra Modi meets Prince William, Kate Middleton

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who arrived on their first visit to India on Sunday. The PM had invited the royal couple for lunch. Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Prince William and Kate Middleton on Monday visited Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial in New Delhi and paid homage him. In a close to 45-minute visit to the Gandhi Smriti on Tees January Marg, the royal couple also saw the exhibits there and came to know that Gandhi learned to wear a tie and play violin during his stay in London as a student.

The Duke and Duchess Cambridge also paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at the Martyr’s Column. The Father of the Nation was killed on January 30, 1948 by a Hindu fanatic at the Birla House when he was taking a stroll there. The House, where Gandhi spent the last few years of his life, was later turned into a memorial.

They also visited the museum, the khadi-weaving room and expressed keen interest in knowing about Lord Mountbatten’s tribute to Gandhi among other eminent personalities, after his death.

The royal couple were particularly keen about the spinning wheel the use of which he popularised all his life. Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India was related to the British royal family. Gandhi and Mountbatten were known to have shared bonhomie and the last Viceroy even attended his funeral.

Known for their sartorial grace, the couple looked elegant in their attire. Kate wore a cream dress by Emilia Wickstead on her first outing in the city. The couple is on a seven-day tour of India and Bhutan, aimed at building up strong bonds with the two countries.