Nehru Papers Belong to Nation, Not a Family: Govt to Sonia
Centre demands return of 51 cartons of Jawaharlal Nehru papers to PMML for public access
- Govt asks Sonia Gandhi to return 51 cartons of Nehru papers to PMML
- Culture Minister says documents are not “missing” but withheld since 2008
- Centre stresses papers are national heritage, not private property
- PMML sent multiple reminders in 2025 seeking their return
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 18th Dec: The Centre on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Sonia Gandhi over the custody of “51 cartons of Jawaharlal Nehru papers,” asserting that the historical documents must be returned to the Prime Ministers’ Museum and Library (PMML) so that scholars, citizens and Parliament can access them.
Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat clarified the government’s response given in Parliament on December 15, stating that the papers are “not missing” as their whereabouts are known. “In reality, 51 cartons of Jawaharlal Nehru papers were formally taken back by the family in 2008 from the PMML (then NMML). Their location is known. Hence, they are not missing,” Shekhawat said in a post on X.
The clarification came a day after the Congress criticised the Centre over its Lok Sabha reply, where Shekhawat had said that no Nehru-related documents were found missing during the PMML’s annual inspection in 2025. The issue has reignited a long-running political dispute between the BJP and the Congress over the custody of documents linked to India’s first Prime Minister.
Shekhawat said the papers were handed over officially in 2008 on request, with proper records and catalogues maintained by the PMML. However, he questioned why the documents have not been returned despite repeated reminders. “Why have these papers not been returned despite multiple reminders from PMML, including in January and July 2025? The nation deserves clarity,” he said.
Stressing the importance of public access, the minister argued that scholars and citizens have a right to original documentary sources to arrive at a balanced understanding of Jawaharlal Nehru’s era. “These are not private family papers. They relate to the first Prime Minister of India and form part of our national historical record. Such papers belong in public archives, not behind closed doors,” he said.
Responding to Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s remarks questioning the government’s stand, Shekhawat said the truth was already on record. He added that the papers were taken out during the UPA period, “when public institutions were often treated as family preserves,” and noted that Sonia Gandhi had acknowledged in writing that the documents were with her and had promised to cooperate.
Earlier in the day, the Ministry of Culture also reiterated that the Nehru papers form part of the nation’s documentary heritage and are not private property. The ministry said PMML has remained in continuous correspondence with Sonia Gandhi’s office seeking the return of the documents.
The PMML Society is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as its president, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh as vice-president. The Centre maintained that archival openness and transparency are essential for democracy and that the Nehru papers must be restored to the public domain.
