Jawaharlal Nehru birth anniversary: Why India’s first prime minister is still relevant in the 21st century

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru played a significant role during Indiarsquos fight for independenceNehru was born on November 14 1889 in Allahabad known today as Prayagraj to Motilal and Swarup Rani Nehru One of Indias most celebrated freedom fighters he served as the Prime Minister for 17 years from August 15 1947 till his demise on May 17 1964 at the age of 74Childrenrsquos Day is celebrated on November 14 every year to commemorate the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru He was referred to as lsquoChacha Nehrursquo by the children who he loved dearlyNehru a visionary leader thought of India as a modern and selfreliant nation However today his perceptions and policies are questioned and often ridiculed by manyModirsquos motto is to be a bigger leader than Nehru Charan Singh SapraRemembering the first Prime Minister of independent India on his birth anniversary Mumbai Congress working president Charan Singh Sapra said ldquoHe is politically relevant because of his vision for India The institutions which he visualised and started building are still helping the country in its growth During his tenure the IITs the IIMs Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and Bharat heavy electricals were built From developing these companies creating jobs making India selfsufficient creating products to making demands in the market I feel whatever he had visualised in his tenure or probably till he lived he tried to implement all Nehru created the foundation of independent India whether it is cultural economic or healthcare In all spheres as the prime minister he worked for the upliftment of the country and the countrymen Hence he is and will remain relevant for many years to comerdquoAlso readJairam Ramesh bats for consensus upholds prominence of NehruGandhi familyWhen asked if the narrative has changed over the years Sapra added ldquoI dont think so But yes the BJP is trying to change the narrative The very motto of Narendra Modi is that he wants to be a bigger leader than Nehru Modi wants to be the Prime Minister for a longer tenure than Nehru He wants to challenge Sardar Vallabhai Patel We have already seen a teaser when Modi changed the name of Motera Stadium to Narendra Modi Stadium He changed the name of the stadium mainly because he wants to send a message to the masses that this is another Sardar Patel in IndiardquoHe also said that not just social media but also electronic media is used to change the narrative ldquoThe media is controlled by big industrial houses I am not blaming the journalists The issue is that the industrial houses have taken over the media and the former is at the mercy of the central government The system has changed It is not democratic anymore Modi wants to change the perception He wants to show that he is the biggest leader the tallest leader of independent India even taller than Nehru and PatelWhile remembering Nehru the Mumbai Congress working president shared ldquoNehru believed in secularism he never believed in divisive politics No matter who gets elected as Prime Minister to run a country of this size multilinguistic and multireligious like India one will have to follow secularism Communalism polarisation can get you votes They can help you win elections but they cannot help you run the country Today this is why the country is becoming economically weak The country cannot be run by ldquojhumlasrdquo You have to be practical You have to run the country on the plank of secularism which Nehru tried to maintain and told the leaders of the future that secularism is the only plan I feel the sooner Modi understands this will be better for the countryrdquoBJP misleading youth over what Nehru stood for Priyanka ChaturvediEchoing similar sentiments is Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi ldquoNehru continues to be relevant in todays era because its not about him but the ethos brought to India and how it changed Indias democracy He made it a liberal intrusive idea of India which has a scientific temperament and will continue to be one idea that will continue to be relevant in a diverse nation such as ours He chose united diverse India over a very narrowminded outlook of how India should be perceivedrdquoThe Rajya Sabha MP further expressed that Nehrursquos narrative has been undermined ldquoHis narrative has been undermined reduced to distortion and he has been blamed for everything which is unfortunate In a nation like ours which was as diverse during the time of independence as it is now and the struggles that our freedom fighters had to for through to gain independence is now being questioned by senior cabinet ministers who are targeting him and trying to tarnish his image Nehru was not just a national leader he was and continues to be an important global leader He played an important role in Indias foreign policy Indias nonalignment movement which in spirit is followed by the central government while demonising himrdquoShe further said the younger generation has been misled over what Nehru stood for ldquoThey BJP have tried to mislead the younger generation about what he stood for They have even gone to an extent right from social media to the Internet They have gone to the extent of refiling Nehrursquos Wikipedia pages trying to bring in an ugly narrative about him This goes against the spirit of who we are and what we believe in which is the idea of Indias vision towards a better futurerdquoWhile remembering Jawaharlal Nehru Chaturvedi shared ldquoCelebrating Childrens Day was an important occasion It also reminded us of the contribution of Indias first prime minister towards nationbuilding where he kept the young and the children first He understood that the future generation needs a scientific temperament and set up IITs and institutions that we have to be proud of whether we talk about it or not Big infrastructure projects that India needed at that time were given the onus One thing cannot be forgotten his largerthanlife persona in Indian history and its relevance in the Indian context even todayrdquoNehru has been vilified for political purposes Preeti Sharma MenonMeanwhile Preeti Sharma Menon Aam Aadmi Party AAP Mumbai President said ldquoIt is Indias misfortune that today Jawaharlal Nehru is no longer relevant India has been blessed with statesmen like Nehru and Sardar Patel With philosophical and political geniuses like Mahatma Gandhi but this was almost a century ago Today mediocrity is prevailing in all walks of life especially in the political and public spheres It is beyond the comprehension of the political class of today to emulate and understand the greatness of Jawaharlal NehrurdquoldquoNehru has been vilified for political purposes He has been considered a hero by one party or another party for political purposes But the real intellectual class of Jawaharlal Nehru does not exist anymore in this country in the political circles and therefore sadly has become irrelevant India will rise to a golden age again but it is only when people in public life rise to the stature of people like Jawaharlal Nehrurdquo she further said