93. Duel with a Doctor

During his incarceration in the Aga Khan Palace Gandhiji had contracted malarial fever, but the Delhi authorities would not grant the request of the Bombay Government to place Gandhiji under the treatment of Dr. B. C. Roy, the noted physician of Calcutta (and now Premier of Bengal) who happened to be in Bombay at the time. After a great deal of correspondence, permission was obtained for Dr. Roy to see Gandhiji at the Palace.

Dr. Roy: "But, Mahatmaji, whom do you think I have come to treat? I have come to treat not Mohandas K. Gandhi, but the person who represents to me the 400 million. Because I feel that, if he dies, the 400 million die; and if he lives the 400 million live."

No reply was forthcoming. Gandhiji had no other alternative but to give in, and after a pause he said, "All right, Dr. Bidhan, you have won; so I have to place myself at your mercy. Give me whatever medicines you like, and I will take them. But I wonder why did you not study law instead of medicine. You possess such a wonderful legal acumen."

Dr. Roy proudly said, "God has made me a medical man because He knew that a day would come when it would be my privilege to treat His most beloved son, our Mahatma Gandhi."

"Nevertheless, you are arguing like a lawyer," Gandhiji said.