Indian PM Narendra Modi's 'Name-Striped' suit up for auction

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's suit being auctioned in Surat - Photo via twitter/‏@IndianLibDem

Ahmedabad — A suit with Narendra Modi’s name stitched into the pinstripe, worn by the Indian premier when he met Barack Obama, is to be sold at auction on Wednesday to raise money to clean the Ganges.

The famously fastidious prime minister was mocked for narcissism after wearing the bespoke wool suit with the words “Narendra Damodardas Modi” woven into it in tiny letters when he met the US president in Delhi last month.

It goes on sale, along with more than 450 other gifts the Indian premier has received, in a three-day auction that starts on Wednesday in the in the city of Surat in Modi’s home state of Gujarat, organisers said.

“These items are gifts that the PM received since he took charge... the items that will be auctioned include his pinstriped suit,” Milind Toravane, Surat municipal chief and organiser of the event, told AFP.

Toravane said no reserve had been set for the suit.

The money will go towards the clean-up of the Ganges, a pet project of Modi, who has described the pollution of the sacred river as a national shame.

It is not the first time Modi has auctioned off gifts for charity — as chief minister of Gujarat, he gave away some 18,000 items, raising over $3 million for girls’ education.