The Congress on Friday accused the Union government of ‘erasing’ history by extinguishing the eternal flame of Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate and merging it with the immortal flame at the National War Memorial.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the Congress would once again light the Amar Jawan Jyoti for the brave soldiers.
“It is a matter of great sadness that the immortal flame for our brave soldiers will be extinguished today. Some people cannot understand patriotism and sacrifice - never mind...We will once again light the ‘Amar Jawan Jyoti’ for our soldiers,” he said in a tweet, indicating that the Congress would restore the eternal flame if it comes to power.
Lok Sabha member and senior Congress leader Manish Tewari tweeted, “Extinguishing Amar Jawan Jyoti tantamounts to extinguishing history. For it commentates sacrifice of those 3,483 brave soldiers who cleaved Pakistan into two parts and redrew map of South Asia post partition”.
Pointing out the ‘irony’ of the government’s move coming in the 50th anniversary of liberation of Bangladesh, Mr Tewari said, “Government seems to be working overtime to erase India’s finest hour in post Independent History. Amar Jawan Jyoti is imbued in the national consciousness. A billion people have grown up venerating it. Why can’t India have two eternal flames? Amar Jawan Jyoti and National War Memorial,”he asked.
‘Nothing short of a crime’
“Redeveloping the Central Vista was hubris enough but extinguishing the eternal flame at India Gate is nothing short of a crime. I am surprised that the nation is silent as a national icon would be snuffed out in the project to rewrite-write history,” the former Union Minister said.
Lok Sabha member Shashi Tharoor tweeted, “This government has no respect for democratic tradition & established convention, whether in parliament or out of it. The sanctity acquired after fifty years of the Amar Jawan Jyoti is being lightly snuffed out.”
Calling it a national outrage and an insult to the memory of martyrs, Deputy Congress Leader in the Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma tweeted, “BJP government’s mandate was to build the nation, not to rewrite history. War memorial has its place but Amar Jawan Jyoti has sanctity and nations pride”.
Youth Congress members, led by its chief B V Srinivas, also took out a protest march against the Modi government.
