SUBHASH CHANDRA AGRAWAL
(Guinness Record Holder & Crusader for Transparency)
Third December is birth-anniversary of India’s forgotten first President Dr Rajendraprasad: Present government should take steps for his remembrance
Third December happens to be a forgotten birth-anniversary of India’s first President Dr Rajendra Prasad. While successive governments always celebrated birth-anniversary of India’s first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru even during his life-time in form of Children’s Day on every 14th November, Congress having ruled the country for long ever since independence chose to forget Dr Rajendra Prasad altogether perhaps because Nehru was personally opposed to him, and in fact was even opposed to making him India’s first President. It is a well-known historical fact that Dr Rajendra Prasad refused to follow Nehru’s ‘instructions’ for not inaugurating Somnath Temple in the year 1951.
No post-retirement facilities including proper accommodation or medical facilities were provided to him resulting in his death just due to cough because of his living in a highly dampened room. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru even avoided attending his funeral after his death on 28.02.1963. Dr Sampurbnand in his autobiography has exposed that Nehru prevented him from attending funeral of Dr Rajendra Prasad.
Present government has rightly decided to remember several such forgotten leaders of Congress regime. It will be better if some appropriate steps are taken so that school-children and youngsters may at least know who India’s first President was!
