BJP questions Gandhis' reluctance to make 51 cartons of Nehru's letters to Edwina, Einstein & more public
By Sunita Iyer | First Published Dec 16, 2024, 2:23 PM ISTThe BJP has questioned the Gandhis' reluctance to release 51 cartons of historical letters written by Jawaharlal Nehru, including correspondences with Lady Edwina Mountbatten, after they were removed from public access in 2008.
The BJP on Monday raised questions about the Gandhi family's reluctance to release 51 cartons of historical letters written by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to various notable figures, including Lady Edwina Mountbatten, as well as to prominent leaders like Pt. Govind Ballabh Pant and Jayaprakash Narayan.
What was so secretive in the letters India's First PM Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to Edwina Mountbatten that Mrs Sonia Gandhi took them in her personal possession?
The country demands answers from Mrs Sonia Gandhi.
The text of entire 51 carton letters need to be made public in… pic.twitter.com/ONQXqwgOXF
The controversy erupted after the Prime Minister's Museum and Library (PMML) had requested Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to return the collection of historical letters belonging to former PM Nehru. These letters were removed from public access in 2008 at the request of Sonia Gandhi, then-chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), and have since been kept privately.
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The collection, transferred to the PMML (formerly the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library) in 1971 by the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, consists of 51 boxes containing personal letters exchanged by Prime Minister Nehru with some of the 20th century's most notable figures. These include letters to Albert Einstein, Jayaprakash Narayan, Edwina Mountbatten, Padmaja Naidu, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Aruna Asaf Ali, and Babu Jagjivan Ram.
"We understand that these documents may hold personal significance for the 'Nehru family.' However, the PMML believes that making these historical materials, more widely accessible would greatly benefit scholars and researchers. We would be grateful for your collaboration in exploring possible solutions," the PMML's letter reads.
Historian Rizwan Qadri had written to LOP to return the letters written by the 1st Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru written to Edwina Mountbatten, Aruna Asaf Ali, JP Narayan, Albert Einstein & others. Qadri has alleged that UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi had taken away… pic.twitter.com/L5lvpl2BZv
— Pramod Kumar Singh (@SinghPramod2784)Sonia Gandhi withdrew letters in 2008: Kadri
Rizwan Kadri, a member of the Prime Minister's Museum and Library (PMML) Society, has been at the forefront of efforts to recover the letters. In September 2024, he sent a letter to Sonia Gandhi, requesting the return of these crucial documents, or at the very least, permission to scan them for research purposes. These letters, which form a significant part of Indian history, were withdrawn from the museum under orders that, according to Kadri, were made by Sonia Gandhi herself.
"In September 2024, I wrote a letter to Sonia Gandhi requesting that the 51 cartoons from approximately eight different sections, which were part of the Nehru collections at the Prime Ministers' Museum (formerly the Nehru Memorial), be either returned to the institution, or we be granted permission to scan them, or provided with their scanned copies. This would allow us to study them and facilitate research by various scholars," he said.
"These letters are a significant part of Indian history and have been proven through records to have been withdrawn from the museum in 2008 at Sonia Gandhi's direction," Kadri added.
When Sonia Gandhi did not respond to his initial request, Kadri turned to the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, urging him to intervene and help restore the letters.
"Since no response was received from her, I have requested Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to help in getting these materials restored. I have also urged him to consider that these documents are part of the nation's heritage and an important aspect of its history. Until we can view these materials, we cannot determine the reasons for their withdrawal. There must have been some objectionable content for them to have been removed," Kadri said.
51 cartons of Nehru's letters is historical heritage: BJP
In response, BJP MP Sambit Patra expressed his concern over the secrecy surrounding these letters, particularly the correspondence between Nehru and Lady Mountbatten. Patra also raised the question of whether Rahul Gandhi, as Leader of Opposition, would assist in the retrieval of these documents. He pointed out that the letters' removal from public access raises suspicions and concerns that need to be addressed transparently.
On social media, Patra said, "This is intriguing! From What’s today the Prime Minister’s Museum and Library & formerly Nehru Museum and Library, the then UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi took away 51 cartoons of letters written by Nehru to various personalities including “EDWINA MOUNTBATTEN”! In the recently concluded AGM of the PMML one of the members Sh Rizwan Kadri has written to LoP Rahul Gandhi and sought his help in getting back the letters from his mother Sonia Gandhi! What intrigues me is what would have Nehru ji written to EDWINA MOUNTBATTEN that needed censoring and will LOP Rahul help getting back the letters between Nehru and Edwina!"
This is intriguing!
From What’s today the Prime Minister’s Museum and Library & formerly Nehru Museum and Library, the then UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi took away 51 cartoons of letters written by Nehru to various personalities including “EDWINA MOUNTBATTEN”!
In the recently… pic.twitter.com/2TVwjPUSi3
: भाजपा मुख्यालय पर आयोजित प्रेस वार्ता को संबोधित करते हुए https://t.co/Pf0InN8PJL
— Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj)| BJP MP Sambit Patra says, "Prime Minister's Museum and Library (PMML) Society member, Rizwan Qadri has written a letter to the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi requesting that 51 boxes (collection of letters written by Jawaharlal Nehru) taken by Congress… pic.twitter.com/nMmIFJ87Sb
— ANI (@ANI)While addressing a press conference, Patra further said, "Prime Minister's Museum and Library (PMML) Society member, Rizwan Qadri has written a letter to the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi requesting that 51 boxes (collection of letters written by Jawaharlal Nehru) taken by Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson be returned."
"This is a historical heritage (collection of letters written by Jawaharlal Nehru), not the property of any family. The country wants to know what was in the correspondence between Nehru ji and Lady Mountbatten and Jagjivan Ram and Jayaprakash Narayan? What was there in these letters that the first family felt it should not be made public? We demand that the collection of letters written by Jawaharlal Nehru should be returned," he added.
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