Jairam Ramesh, a Congress general secretary, has challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on its claims regarding the Sengol (sceptre) as a symbol of the transfer of power from the British to India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Ramesh cited an interview with the head pontiff of the Thiruvavaduthurai Adheenam, published in The Hindu, where it was stated that there is no clear documentary evidence supporting the assertion that the sceptre was presented to Lord Mountbatten before being handed over to Nehru.
Ramesh called the BJP a “fake factory” and highlighted that the revered head Swamigal of the Thiruvavaduthurai Adheenam himself exposed the party’s claims. He reiterated that there was no involvement of Mountbatten or Rajaji in the official transfer of power on August 14, 1947. However, he affirmed that the majestic Sengol was indeed presented to Nehru, as he had previously stated.
Ramesh provided additional evidence to debunk the BJP’s claims, referring to an advertisement in The Hindu dated August 19, 1947, which mentioned the presentation of the ceremonial sceptre to Nehru at his residence. The initiative was attributed to the Thiruvavaduthurai Adheenam itself. Ramesh also mentioned the involvement of TN Rajaratnam Pillai, a renowned Nagaswaram virtuoso, who presented the mace of solid gold senkol to Nehru on behalf of the Pandarasannadhi of the Tiruvaduturai Matam.
Ramesh emphasized that neither Mountbatten nor Rajaji were mentioned in the historical records, highlighting a new biography by a Japanese ethnomusicologist that includes the episode of August 14, 1947. By exposing the lack of evidence and false claims, Ramesh challenges the BJP’s narrative surrounding the Sengol issue.
