The Prime Minister’s Museum & Library (PMML) has written to Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, asking them to return the 51 cartons containing private letters of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
The private collection of papers was initially donated by Indira Gandhi for the purpose of ‘safekeeping’ to the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund (JNMF).
It was not a gift, meaning that it couldn’t be accessed by scholars without her permission. Indira Gandhi was essentially the owner of the documents until her assassination in 1984.
In a letter to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the Prime Ministers' Museum and Library urged him to return Jawaharlal Nehru's personal letters from Sonia Gandhi.
— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) December 16, 2024
Congress MP @manickamtagore attacks BJP says
"they want to defame Pandit Nehru's sacrifice"#News @snehamordani pic.twitter.com/w3EHCmCWIv
Later, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi also donated letters of Jawaharlal Nehru for ‘safe custody’ to JNMF.
These private papers contain the correspondence of the former Prime Minister with the likes of Edwina Mountbatten, Albert Einstein, Jayaprakash Narayan and Aruna Asaf Ali.
The letters were transferred to the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML), which was re-christened as Prime Minister’s Museum & Library (PMML) in 2022.
This is intriguing!
— Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) December 16, 2024
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
Private letters were removed from collection in 2008
It has now surfaced that the private collection of letters, donated by both Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, was removed from NMML on 5th May 2008.
Sonia Gandhi had reportedly sent a representative, identified as M V Rajan, to the then Nehru Memorial Museum and Library to separate the private papers from official papers of Jawaharlal Nehru.
With the help of other officials, the large collection of private letters of the former Prime Minister was segregated and stuffed in 51 cartons. M V Rajan then facilitated the transfer from the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library to Sonia Gandhi.
At that time, Sonia Gandhi was the chairperson of the Congress-led ‘United Progressive Alliance’ (UPA). The attempt to retrieve the private collection of papers, including letters to Edwina Mountbatten, has failed since 2014.
The matter was discussed at length in April this year during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Prime Minister’s Museum & Library (PMML). Rajnath Singh, Dharmendra Pradhan and Nirmala Sitharaman were present at the meeting.
Letters to Sonia and Rahul Gandhi
PMML member and historian, Rizwan Kadri, wrote a letter to Sonia Gandhi in September but failed to get a response. He then sent another letter to Rahul Gandhi on 10th December.
He emphasised the need to preserve India’s historical heritage, adding that access to the private letters of Nehru ensures an understanding of India’s history.
Kadri had requested digital access/ physical copies or a complete return of the 51 cartons of Nehru papers.
“These documents provide invaluable insights into a critical period of Indian history…We would be grateful for your collaboration in exploring possible solutions,” he added.
