Gandhi’s concept of Trusteeship emerged as a distinctive socio-economic and ethical idea rooted in his broader philosophy of truth, non-violence, and moral self-restraint. It was not merely an economic doctrine but a moral framework aimed at transforming the relationship between wealth, power, and society. Gandhi developed the idea in response to the problems of inequality, exploitation, and concentration of wealth produced by modern industrial civilization and unregulated capitalism. Trusteeship sought to reconcile individual ownership with social responsibility without resorting to violent revolution or coercive state control. At the core of Gandhi’s trusteeship lies the belief that wealth does not belong absolutely to the individual who possesses it. According to him, all material resources ultimately belong to society as a whole, since they are produced through social cooperation and are sustained by natural resources provided by nature. Individuals who control wealth do so not as owners in the moral sense, but as trustees who hold it on behalf of society. This moral obligation requires them to use their surplus wealth for the welfare of others, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable sections of society. Thus, trusteeship redefines property rights by subordinating them to ethical duties. Gandhi was deeply critical of both laissez-faire capitalism and orthodox socialism. He viewed capitalism as inherently exploitative because it permitted unlimited accumulation of wealth by a few, often at the cost of the many. At the same time, he was wary of state socialism and communism, which relied on force, class struggle, and the coercive power of the state to abolish private property. Gandhi feared that replacing private capitalists with an all-powerful state would merely shift exploitation from individuals to institutions and undermine individual freedom. Trusteeship offered a middle path, preserving individual initiative and enterprise while ensuring social justice through moral transformation rather than violent expropriation. A key assumption underlying trusteeship is Gandhi’s faith in the moral capacity of human beings. He believed that individuals, including industrialists and landlords, could be persuaded to act ethically through appeals to conscience and social pressure. Trusteeship was therefore linked to Gandhi’s method of non-violent persuasion rather than legal compulsion. He argued that true and lasting social change could