Mumbai: A Surat diamond merchant known for his rags-to-riches story, Govindbhai Laljibhai Dholakia — or ‘Kaka’ (uncle) to those in the know — was once described as an “inspiration” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He is now one the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) nominees for the upcoming Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat.
Born into a family of farmers in the remote village of Dudhala in Gujarat’s Amreli district, Dholakia is the founder and chairman of Shree Ramkrishna Exports Private Limited, one of the biggest diamond export firms in Surat. He is also known for his philanthropic work, running a ‘non-profit’ called ‘Shree Ramkrishna Welfare Trust’. Founded in 1988, the trust mainly works in the domain of health.
He was one of the BJP’s four nominees from Gujarat for the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for 27 February.
Dholakia’s close associates tell ThePrint that he has even donated “generously” to the Ayodhya temple. According to media reports, Dholakia donated Rs 11 crore to the temple in 2011.
“He’s someone who works for the society and even after this nomination, he would continue to do so,” a close associate of Dholakia told ThePrint, requesting anonymity. “We are happy that he got the nomination and even happier that now he will continue to work for the society by being in the system.”
ThePrint tried to reach Yamal Vyas, chief spokesperson of the Gujarat BJP, via phone calls and text messages. This report will be updated if and when he responds.
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Dholakia’s journey
One of seven brothers, Dholakia moved to Surat — a city known for its diamond bruting and polishing industry — in 1964. After working in the industry for a while, he started Shree Ramkrishna Exports Private Limited in 1970 with two of his friends and grew the business from there.
On his website, Govindbhai says he owes his success to his “godfathers Shantibhai Mehta and Navinbhai Mehta of D. Navin group of companies for their unwavering support in his endeavours.”
“Whoever I met became part of my family. They supported me enormously,” he adds on his website.
At age 13, Dholakia became a devotee of Shri Dongreji Maharaj, a Hindu preacher whose influence played a role in shaping his personal life and his business, according to the website. “His religiousness also earned him the title of ‘Govind Bhagat’ in his early days,” it says.
In 2022, PM Modi reportedly endorsed Dholakia’s autobiography titled Diamonds are Forever, So are Morals, published by Penguin Random House India. Praising the book, Modi said it gave “nuggets of inspiring information” and was a “source of inspiration” for the coming generations.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)