Nehru opposed Somnath Temple reconstruction, claims BJP

Upping the ante against Opposition Congress ahead of the Somnath Swabhiman Parv, which will also be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP on Wednesday alleged that India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru harboured “deep hostility” over the reconstruction of the Somnath Temple after Independence and accused him of prioritising “appeasement politics” over India’s civilisational heritage.

Addressing media persons, BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said he held no personal animosity towards Nehru but was against his “terrible and frightening ideology”. “Just as PM Narendra Modi is not merely an individual, but an institution, Jawaharlal Nehru is not just a leader, but a symbol of an ideology, and it is necessary to understand today how terrible and frightening that ideology was for India, and how much it was concealed behind a veil of deception,” Trivedi said.

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According to the BJP spokesperson, Nehru opposed the reconstruction of the temple and wrote letters to senior leaders, including cabinet ministers, President Rajendra Prasad and Vice-President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, questioning the need for rebuilding the shrine and advising them against attending its inauguration. He claimed Nehru also wrote to chief ministers, arguing that the reconstruction harmed India’s image abroad and also urged the then information and broadcasting minister to limit coverage of the consecration ceremony, describing it as ostentatious.

He also cited the correspondence between Nehru and Pakistan’s first prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan, in which Nehru allegedly dismissed the narrative surrounding the Somnath temple doors as false. Citing the correspondence by diplomat K M Panikkar, Trivedi also alleged that Nehru was more concerned about international reactions, including China’s views, than domestic sentiment. While invaders physically looted the temple, Nehru harboured “deep hostility” towards the reconstruction, he said, accusing the former PM of downplaying Hindu symbols to “appease Pakistan rather than defend India’s cultural legacy”.

The remarks came from the ruling party ahead of PM Modi’s visit to the Somnath Temple on January 11 to participate in the Somnath Swabhiman Parv, being held from January 8 to 11.