New Delhi, May 27
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the historic Sengol, which was never accorded the dignity it deserved in post-Independence India, will finally get its due when it is placed in the temple of democracy on Sunday.
Addressing pontiffs from Tamil Nadu, after he had received from them the sceptre that marked transfer of power from the British to India in 1947, the PM, in a veiled dig at the Congress said, “Sengol not only symbolised the transfer of power, it also marks India’s transition from slavery to liberation. This pure sceptre should have been accorded due dignity post-Independence but it was kept in Prayagraj’s Anand Bhavan as a walking stick for exhibition. We have reclaimed it and the Sengol will finally get its due place in the temple of democracy when it is installed in the new Parliament tomorrow.”
The PM added that those “who want to create hurdles in the path of national development will pose various kind of challenges”.
“Those who dislike India’s progress will attempt to break our unity but I am sure the country will draw lessons in unity spirituality from the Adheenams and Tamil Nadu’s rich legacy of nationalism,” the PM said adding that Tamil Nadu’s contributions to the freedom struggle had not received the attention they should have.
“Due to the efforts of our government, the country is now learning about the treatment meted out to the freedom fighters of Tamil Nadu, which has been the fort of Indian nationalism.”
Recalling the solution to the transfer of power question, which C Rajagopalachari offered in the form of the Sengol in 1947, the PM said, “In Tamil Nadu traditions, Sengol was given to the ruler and symbolised that its bearer would never deflect from the path of duty.
Old pictures tell us of the emotional bond between Tamil culture and modern Indian democracy. Today those forgotten bonds of Sengol have come alive… This also tells us of the treatment meted out to this pure symbol of transfer of power.”
