Modi Govt attacks Nehru’s legacy, asks Memorial Fund to vacate premises

The Narendra Modi Government’s desperate attempts to tamper with India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s legacy continue. The Modi Government and senior ministers often make it a point to ignore Nehru’s contributions.

Over the past few months, efforts have been underway to undermine the basic objective of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) in Delhi. The NMML was established as a tribute to Nehru. Now, a museum to highlight the works of all Prime Ministers of India is being built there, over-riding the objections of the Congress party and Congress leaders, including former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.

The latest victim of Modi government’s vicious attack on Nehru’s legacy is the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund (JNMF). Established on August 17, 1964 in Nehru’s memory, the office of JNMF is in the premises of Teen Murti House, which was the residence of India’s first prime minister. The NMML, which was established on April 1, 1966, is housed on the same property.

On September 11, 2018, the Directorate of Estates, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India wrote to JNMF asking it to vacate the premises by September 24, 2018. Disagreeing with the order, JNMF wrote back to them on September 20, 2018. No response has yet been received by JNMF. According to the Directorate of Estates’ letter, the deadline to evict ends today.

The Directorate of Estates’ letter to the Administrative Secretary of JNMF Dr N Balakrishnan refers to certain facts, which were disputed by JNMF in its response. The Directorate of Estates stated that it took over the property known as “Teen Murti Estate” vide Memorandum dated January 13, 1967. Dr Balakrishnan on JNMF’s behalf responded, “This is totally false and factually incorrect as the facts given in the very same said Memorandum are quite contrary to your claim.” The JNMF’s response further quotes the Memorandum, “The premises in the east of Teen Murti House and which are within the boundary wall of Teen Murti House will remain the property of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.”

The Directorate of Estate termed JNMF’s office as unauthorised occupation of a portion of public property and stated that NMML had requested the Central Government vide communication dated August 23, 2018 that a portion of Teen Murti Estate occupied by JNMF be vacated.

JNMF responds to this point in great detail, describing its 51-years long relationship, which confirms their right to occupy the two buildings in the premises.

JNMF wrote, “The NMML duly permitted JNMF to use and occupy two buildings in the east of Teen Murti House…and since 1967 this decision has never been either challenged or questioned by either your ministry or the NMML all along… This is because of the fact that the objectives of both the NMML and the JNMF are similar and both compliment each other.” It adds that the JNMF greatly assisted the NMML in fulfilling its objectives by transferring the massive collection of archival papers, photographs, film reels, video records etc of Jawaharlal Nehru and his family members, including his father Motilal Nehru.

JNMF also gifted the Nehru Planetarium to the NMML in 2005, which was set up in 1984 for popularising science among the children and youth. Beside this, JNMF also helped the NMML in several ways.

While asserting its rights on two buildings in the premise, JNMF requested the Directorate of Estates to withdraw the letter dated September 11, 2018 asking them to vacate the property.

JNMF’s secretary Suman Dubey explained the issue to National Herald. “We have a long relationship with the NMML and we contributed a lot to the development of the library and organisation as a whole. We are hoping that the government will accept our request and withdraw its order.” He also said that he has not received any response from the government yet after he sent his reply.

From the time of its establishment, JNMF has consistently been working to promote Nehru’s ideas and spread awareness about his contribution to nation-building. This includes publication of Nehru’s Selected Works, awarding fellowships to senior scholars and young researchers and organising seminars on relevant issues.

It is difficult to predict what follows next, but it is quite certain that as India’s first prime minister and maker of modern India, Nehru’s legacy and memories should be safeguarded and promoted. One hopes that petty politics will not be an obstruction in this endeavour.

*This article was updated at 8.03 pm on September 24, 2018 to correct the headline and again at 12.18 pm on September 25 to change the lead image