It no longer surprises the intelligentsia in the country when prime minister Narendra Modi utters half truths and distorts historical facts. This is specially so when it comes to Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s first PM who still remains the most admired Indian leader abroad. As late as a fortnight ago he was remembered with gratitude by the visiting Vietnamese President To Lam, who told his audience, that included ministers of Modi government, at the Indian Council of World Affairs: “We will never forget that prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru was the first foreign leader to visit Vietnam in 1954, just one week after the liberation of Hanoi.”A month ago, during the visit of the South Korean president, a letter from former US president Dwight D. Eishenhower commending Nehru for India’s Korean Mission in 1951-53 was prominently at display at an exhibition in New Delhi. The legacy of Nehru, like Mahatma Gandhi, can never be erased.Speaking at the Virasat Ke 75 Saal (platinum jubilee) celebrations of the reconstruction of the Somnath temple on Monday (May 11) this is what PM Modi stated: “Unfortunately in India issues linked to national pride are entangled in politics Reconstruction of Somnath temple is a prime example…everyone knows the resistance that Sardar Patel and Dr Rajendra Prased faced from Nehruji.”This is factually incorrect. The truth is that Nehru never resisted restoration of the ancient temple. The matter was placed before his cabinet which approved the reconstruction. If Nehru had resisted the restoration, as Modi would have us believe, how his council of ministers headed by Nehru could have given its consent ? But Nehru was very firm in his opinion, and gave directions accordingly, that government funds, central or state, must not be utilised for the purpose. Both Rajendra Prasad ( who became President two years later) and Patel were members of the cabinet which took this decision.Actually it was not Sardar Patel, but N.V. Gadgil, his cabinet colleague from Maharastra (then Bombay state) who was the first political leader to initiate the idea of reconstruction of Somnath temple. In the first week of November, Gadgil had accompanied the deputy prime minister on a visit to Junagadh, the state which belatedly acceded to India, and where Somnath was located.This is what historian Rajmohan Gandhi writes in his biography of Sardar Patel, Patel A Life: “After the Junagadh rally the Sardar visited the Somnath temple…With him was N.V. Gadgil, his colleague in the Cabinet. Both were visibly moved…Gadgil felt that the temple should be renovated. He mentioned the idea to Patel, who at once agreed and publicly proposed it.”Initially Patel pushed for government funds for the reconstruction but stepped back after there was strong objection from prime minister Nehru. The matter was taken to Mahatma Gandhi who spoke to Patel. Rajmohan adds: “After a discussion between Gandhi and the Sardar it was decided that a trust should renovate the temple with funds from the public. Vallabhbhai assured the Mahatma that ‘not a single pie would be taken from the treasury of Junagadh or from the Government of India’s resources.’ The two agreed that India’s government was ‘not a theocratic one’ and did ‘not belong to any particular religion.’ It was ‘secular’ and temples should not be built or rebuilt by it.”On July 20, 1950 Nehru wrote to K.M. Munshi, a Union minister and chairman of the Somnath Temple Trust: “I have been feeling a little uncomfortable at your references to the rebuilding of the Somnath temple. As a Government, we cannot undertake the building of any religious edifices…Also in the present economic condition of the country and the great lack of residential accomodation, any project for a large scale building of a temple seems out of place.”Nehru had referred to housing problems of refugeesPrime minister Nehru was referring to the housing problems of millions of shelterless refugees who had migrated from Pakistan. The 15 month India-Pakistan war in Jammu and Kashmir had also added to the country’s economic misery.But by the time the temple renovation was complete, Sardar Patel had died, and the Trust chairman K.M. Munshi invited Dr Rajendra Prasad, now the president of India, to perform the inaugural ceremony which he accepted. However, PM Nehru had strong reservations and wrote to the president on March 2, 1951, a few days before the inauguration: “I confess that I do not like the idea of your associating yourself with a spectacular opening of the Somnath Temple. This is not merely visiting a temple, which can certainly be done by you or anyone else, but rather participating in a significant function which unfortunately has a number of implications.”Again a month later he wrote : “My dear Rajendra Babu, I am greatly worried about the Somnath affair. As I feared, it is assuming a certain political importance. We are asked how a secular Government such as ours can associate itself with a ceremony which is, in addition, revivalist in character.” But he added: “If you feel that it will not be right for you to refuse…I would not like to press my point any further.”But President Prasad found ‘ nothing wrong in attending the event ‘ and performed the inaugural ceremony of the temple on March 11, 1951.Earlier, a few days before the inauguration Nehru in his regular monthly letters to the chief ministers had cautioned them: “You must have read about the coming ceremonies at the Somnath temple.. But it should be clearly understood that this function is not governmental and the Government of India as such has nothing to do with it…we have to remember that we must not do anything which comes in the way of our being secular. That is the basis of our Constitution and Governments, therefore, should refrain from associating themselves with anything which tends to affect the secular character of our State.. It is important that Governments should keep the secular and non- communal ideal always before them.”Nehru was right. A month later, after the inauguration of the temple, he lamented in his next letter to the chief ministers: ‘The recent inauguration of the Somnath temple, with pomp and ceremony has created a very bad impression about India and her professions.”As if taking a revenge, the Modi government has celebrated the platinum jubilee of the rebuilt Somnath Temple with much greater pomp and ceremony that took place during the inaugural ceremony 75 years ago. The 5 day event , from April 7 -11 witnessed thousands of crores being spent on avoidable extravaganza. Each of the five days full page advertisements were given in national dailies and regional papers prominently displaying the image of Prime Minister paying obesesience to the shrine.This itself must have run into hundred of crores. A post on X reflected the adverse public reaction : “Dear @PMO.This is the fifth full page ad in 5 days. Being the PM how can you waste hundreds of crores in this manner? Doesn’t your conscience prick you ? This is no way to pay tribute to Sardar Patel. You are inviting his curse by such unsecular acts.”But the too clever by prime minister made sure that he was through with this 5 day Somnath festivities, costing thousands of crores to the public exchequer, well before he appealed to the nation to observe austerity. Once again the poor people of India have been taken for a ride.The writer, an ex Army officer, is a columnist and author of He Almost Prevented Partition – The Life and Times of Dr MC Davar & Freedom Struggle and Beyond)