NEW DELHI: The Congress on Friday hit out at the government over renaming the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society here as Prime Ministers' Museum and Library Society, calling it a "petty act" and asserting that legacies don't get erased by renaming buildings.
Nearly a year after the Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya was inaugurated on the premises of the Teen Murti Bhavan, the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society (NMML) has been renamed as Prime Ministers' Museum and Library Society.
In a special meeting of the NMML, it was resolved to change its name to Prime Ministers' Museum and Library Society, the Culture Ministry said Friday.
The meeting was presided over by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh who is the vice president of the Society, it said.
जिनका कोई इतिहास ही नहीं है, वो दूसरों के इतिहास को मिटाने चले हैं ! Nehru Memorial Museum & Library का नाम बदलने के कुत्सित प्रयास से, आधुनिक भारत के शिल्पकार व लोकतंत्र के निर्भीक प्रहरी, पंडित जवाहरलाल नेहरू जी की शख़्सियत को कम नहीं किया जा सकता। इससे केवल BJP-RSS की ओछी…
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) June 16, 2023Reacting to the development, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said, "Pettiness & Vengeance, thy name is Modi. For over 59 years Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) has been a global intellectual landmark and treasure house of books & archives. It will henceforth be called Prime Ministers Museum & Society."
"What won't Mr Modi do to distort, disparage and destroy the name & legacy of the architect of the Indian nation-state? A small, small man overburdened by his insecurities is the self-styled Vishwaguru," Ramesh said.
Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal said the Teen Murti Bhavan is a historic monument where India's destiny was crafted.
"The architect of India's post-independence glory was our first PM, Jawaharlal Nehru. Erasing his legacy by changing the name of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library is a petty act, which only further diminishes the stature of the current regime," Venugopal said on Twitter.
"India's every success is achieved on the foundation of Nehru ji's vision. India knows that, and removing his name from a museum will not change the revered stature that Nehru ji enjoys in every Indian's heart," he said.
Congress MP Manish Tewari also hit out at the government, saying legacies don't get erased by renaming buildings.
VIDEO | "You can remove (Jawaharlal Nehru's) name from the boards but you can't remove the respect which people of this country have for him," says Congress leader Gourav Vallabh on Centre renaming the Nehru Memorial Museum. pic.twitter.com/Z0kKg5SAT1
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 16, 2023"I wish those who want to erase Jawahar Lal Nehru's contribution to freedom struggle & building of Modern India would once read Discovery of India & Glimpses of World History to fathom the depth of Nehru," he said on Twitter.
Congress spokesperson Gourav Vallabh said, "You can remove (Jawaharlal Nehru's) name from the boards but you can't remove the respect which people of this country have for him."
