The government on Wednesday clarified that the private papers of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru cannot be termed as "missing" from the Prime Ministers Museum and Library (PMML), stating that their whereabouts are known and that they are in the possession of former Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
The clarification came a day after the Congress demanded an apology from the Centre, citing a government reply in Parliament which said that no papers were "missing" from the PMML.
The issue arose following a written response by Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to a question by BJP MP Sambit Patra on whether Nehru’s letters were missing from the PMML. In his reply, Shekhawat stated that "no document related to the first Prime Minister of the country is missing from PMML."
Centre asks Sonia Gandhi to return Nehru letters
In a series of posts on X, the Ministry of Culture rejected the opposition's claims and said that in 2008 Sonia Gandhi, had requested that she wishes to take back all of the private family letters and notes of former PM. "Vide letter dated April 29, 2008, M V Rajan, representative of Smt. Sonia Gandhi requested that Smt. Gandhi wishes to take back all of the private family letters and notes of former PM Jawahar Lal Nehru. Accordingly, 51 cartons of Nehru Papers were sent to Smt. Sonia Gandhi in 2008."
"PMML has been in continuous correspondence with the office of Smt Sonia Gandhi since then for the return of these papers, including the letters from PMML to Smt Sonia Gandhi dated January 28, 2025 and July 3, 2025," the Ministry of Culture said.
The ministry further clarified that the papers can't be termed as "missing" as their whereabouts are known and sought for their return, saying that they are "part of the nation's documentary heritage"
"Therefore, the Nehru Papers are not "missing" from PMML as their whereabouts are known. These documents, relating to the first Prime Minister of India, form part of the nation's documentary heritage and not a private property. Their custody with PMML and access to citizens and scholars for research is vital," the Ministry added.
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