A US consulate official is said to have asked Sabarmati Gandhi ashram officials whether it would be compulsory for US President Donald Trump to remove his shoes at the ashram. Sources now say Trump is most likely to remove his footwear while visiting Hriday Kunj, the Mahatma’s house, in the ashram.

Sources said Trump will be gifted a set of Gandhiji’s ‘Three Monkeys’ — which promote the virtue of not seeing, not speaking, and not hearing evil. Trump’s ashram visit is expected to last about 15 minutes on February 24. A key government source said, “Trump and his wife Melania Trump have reportedly conveyed that the tradition of removing shoes before entering Hriday Kunj, where Gandhiji lived, will be followed.”

Sources said that Trump and the first lady will be welcomed at the ashram with a garland made from khadi yarn. “President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will greet people on the other side of the riverfront from a podium erected near Hriday Kunj,” a source said. “Trump might make an entry in the visitors’ book as well.”

Sources said that mementos gifted to Trump will include photo frames of Gandhiji’s famous quotes and some photographs. “From the ashram, the two leaders will leave for the Motera stadium,” the source said.

Trump will be the first serving US president to visit Gujarat. In 2001, when Bill Clinton visited the Gandhi ashram, he was no longer the US president. In 2015, John Kerry — the US secretary of state at the time — visited the Gandhi ashram before participating in the Vibrant Summit. Former US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, has also visited the ashram. China President Xi Jinping, Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have visited Ahmedabad and the Gandhi ashram.