Congress Leader Sonia Gandhi launched a fierce attack on the BJP on Thursday, accusing the ruling establishment of orchestrating a deliberate "project" to vilify and erase Jawaharlal Nehru from India's historical narrative, aiming to dismantle the democratic, secular, and economic foundations he helped build. Speaking at the launch of the Nehru Centre India at Jawahar Bhawan, Gandhi described the efforts as a "systematic attempt to denigrate, distort, demean, and defame" the country's first Prime Minister, calling it "totally unacceptable."

Gandhi, the Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson, emphasised that Nehru's legacy as the architect of Modern India—spanning planned economic development, scientific institutions, and unity in diversity—remains a "beacon of light" for millions. She argued that while legitimate critique is welcome, the current campaign divorces Nehru from his historical context and serves a "crude and self-serving" agenda to rewrite history. "Those behind this belong to an ideology that had no role in the freedom movement or the making of the Constitution and that fanned the hate leading to Mahatma Gandhi's assassination," she added, vowing to confront such distortions.

The BJP swiftly hit back, dismissing Gandhi's charges as "crying wolf" and countering that it is the Congress that has historically underestimated Nehru's contributions by covering up his "mistakes," such as the 1962 Sino-Indian War and alleged scams. BJP spokesperson Tom Vadakkan suggested that if the Gandhi family truly reveres Nehru, they should adopt his surname instead of continuing with "Gandhi". "It's time she stops crying wolf all the time. If she had great respect for Nehru, she would have added the surname of Nehru to the family line," Vadakkan told NDTV, adding that highlighting historical realities is not disrespect but accountability.

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The exchange reignites the long-standing ideological battle over Nehru's legacy, a flashpoint in Indian politics. Gandhi's remarks coincide with the launch of a searchable digital archive of Nehru's selected works by the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, covering 1903 to 1964, aimed at countering "deliberate mischief" with facts. She urged collective resistance: "We owe this to Nehru's memory, to ourselves, and to coming generations."

As the Congress positions itself as the guardian of Nehruvian ideals ahead of state elections, the BJP's retort underscores their narrative of exposing Congress-era "whitewashes". The spat highlights deepening divides over India's foundational history, with both sides accusing the other of political opportunism.

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