‘Walking stick’ will get its rightful place, says PM Modi ahead of establishing ‘Sengol’ in new Parliament

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the eve of the inauguration of the new Parliament building on Saturday, said that the symbol of transfer of power, the ‘Sengol’, which was kept as a ‘walking stick’ in Prayagraj’s Anand Bhavan, will get its rightful place on Sunday.

While addressing Adheenams (priests), who handed over the sacred sceptre to him here today, PM Modi said, “It would have been better if, after independence this revered ‘Sengol’ was given an appropriate place. But this ‘Sengol’ was put on display at Anand Bhavan in Prayagraj as a walking stick”.

“Our government has now brought that ‘Sengol’ out of Anand Bhavan and it is getting its appropriate place in the temple of democracy”, he said.

Earlier in the day, the Prime Minsiter met the Adheenams at his residence and sought their blessings. In his address to Adheenams, he said, “I am delighted that tomorrow, at the time of the inauguration of the new Parliament building, all of you are going to personally come there and give blessings”.

Highlighting the role of Tamil Nadu in the freedom struggle, he said the southern state has been a bastion of Indian nationalism in every era.

“Despite this, it is unfortunate that the Tamil people were not given the importance they should have been given during India’s independence. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has started raising this issue prominently”, PM Modi said, adding that now the people of the country are also coming to know what happened to Tamil Nadu.

He said that when the time of Independence came, there was a question about the symbol of the transfer of power. “At that time, under the guidance of Raja ji and Adheenams, we got a virtuous path from our ancient Tamil culture. And the way was of the transfer of power through Sengol”, he said.

He went on to add that in Tamil tradition, ‘Sengol’ was given to the ruler. It was a symbol that the person bearing it has the responsibility of ensuring the welfare of the country and will never deviate from the path of duty.

“Today, photographs from that period (1947) remind us of the passionate and intimate connection between Tamil culture and India’s destiny as a modern democracy. Today, the saga of those deep ties has once again come alive after coming out of the buried pages of history. Along with this, we also get to know what was done with this biggest symbol of transfer of power”, he said further.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will dedicate to the nation the new Parliament building on Sunday.

Various rituals according to the Vedas will be performed ahead of the inauguration of the new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 28, sources said on Thursday. The inauguration ceremony will begin around 12 noon. However, in the run-up to the event, preparations will be done since morning.

As per sources, an elaborate ceremony will take place in the morning on Sunday, which includes pujas performed in a Vedic ritual way, starting at 7:30 am. These pujas will go on till 9 am, after which the inauguration function is expected to begin around noon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the new Parliament Building on December 10, 2020. It has been built in record time with quality construction. (ANI)