Gandhi's letter about spinning wheel may fetch $5K

An undated letter written by Mahatma Gandhi, stressing on the importance of the spinning wheel, is expected to sell for USD 5,000, according to US-based RR Auction.

Signed "Bapu's blessings", the letter is written in Gujarati and addressed to a person named Yashwant Prasad, the auction house said in a statement.

"What we expected of the mills has happened," Gandhi wrote in the letter.

"However, what you say is correct: all depends on the loom," he wrote.

Gandhi's reference to the spinning wheel is exceptionally important, as he had adopted it as a symbol of economic independence.

During the movement for independence, Gandhi encouraged Indians to spend time each day spinning khadi (homespun cloth) in support of the Indian movement for independence.

He encouraged all Indians to wear khadi instead of British-made textiles as a part of the swadeshi movement.

The spinning wheel -- and the textile itself -- became symbolic of the movement toward Indian independence.

The online auction ends on September 12.