NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru over the construction of Somnath temple and accused him of “the greatest hatred towards Lord Somnath.” In a series of social media post on X, BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi cited numerous letters written by Nehru, claiming that Nehru did not want the Somnath Temple to be restored.“In the past, Somnath was looted by Mahmud of Ghazni and Alauddin Khilji, but in independent India, Pandit Nehru harboured the greatest hatred towards Lord Somnath,” Trivedi said.Trivedi said that Nehru reassured Pakistan’s Prime Minister by dismissing the Somnath narrative, portraying this as a form of external appeasement that prioritised India’s international image over its civilisational and religious symbolism.“The most striking example of this is that on 21 April 1951, Pandit Nehru wrote a letter to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, addressing him as “Dear Nawabzada”, in which he described the story of Somnath’s doors as “completely false”. In a way, Pandit Nehru surrendered to Liaquat Ali Khan by writing that nothing like the construction of the Somnath Temple was happening,” Trivedi said.“What, after all, was Pandit Nehru so afraid of in Liaquat Ali Khan that he was writing to him about the Somnath Temple? Instead of confronting Pakistan’s propaganda or defending India’s civilisational memory, Pandit Nehru chose to belittle Hindu historical symbols to please Pakistan and prioritised external appeasement over internal self-confidence,” he added.Trivedi also cited multiple letters in which Nehru played down the temple’s restoration and discouraged participation by the President and other leaders. He added that Nehru also sought to limit the media coverage over the issue and instructed embassies not to assist the Somnath Trust, including requests for water from rivers for the consecration ceremony.“Everyone knows that Pandit Nehru not only wrote letters to cabinet ministers but also to President Dr Rajendra Prasad and Vice President Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, raising questions about the need for the reconstruction of the Somnath Temple and advising them against attending the inauguration ceremony,” Trivedi said.“But it’s also true that Pandit Nehru wrote to all the Chief Ministers of India—not once, but twice—complaining about the construction of the Somnath Temple and stating that it has damaged India’s image abroad. Not only that, Pandit Nehru wrote to India’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, RR Diwakar, asking him to reduce coverage of the consecration ceremony of the Somnath Temple, describing the ceremony as ostentatious and even going so far as to say that it was harming India’s image in the world. He also wrote that he was not pleased about the President attending the ceremony,” he added.This comes amidst PM Modi’s scheduled visit to Somnath temple on January 11 to take part in Somnath Swabhiman Parv celebations.The Somnath Swabhiman Parv will be observed from January 8 to January 11, during which a range of programmes highlighting India’s spiritual heritage, cultural pride and social values will be held.
