Why did Mahatma Gandhi never receive the Nobel Peace Prize?

Mahatma Gandhi was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1937, 1938, 1939, 1947 and days before his assassination in 1948, but never received it. Until 1960, the prize was awarded "almost exclusively" to Europeans and Americans, according to The Nobel Prize website. A posthumous award was considered in 1948 but was ruled out on technical grounds.