WATCH: PM Modi places sacred Sengol inside new Parliament House

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday installed the historic 'Sengol' near the Lok Sabha Speaker's chair in the new Parliament building, which is set to be inaugurated later in the day. PM Modi met Adheenams at his residence and took their blessings on Saturday. The Adheenams, who arrived from Tamil Nadu yesterday, met Modi at his residence and handed him special gifts including 'Sengols' amid chanting of 'mantras'.

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'Sengol' was a symbol of the transfer of power from the British in 1947. Today, Prime Minister Modi carried the historic 'Sengol' into the Lok Sabha chamber of the new Parliament building. He was accompanied by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. Before placing the Sengol, PM Modi performed a puja and havan amid chants by Adheenams (heads of Hindu monasteries).  

On Saturday, PM Modi interacted with Adheenams and said the 'Sengol' should have gotten due respect after Independence but it was kept on display as a "walking stick" at Anand Bhawan in Prayagraj.

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Modi said "your sevak" and the government has brought the Sengol out of Anand Bhawan in Prayagraj. Anand Bhawan was the residence of the Nehru family and has been converted into a museum. Sengol holds significance not only because it was a sacred symbol of power transfer in 1947, it is also significant as it connected the glorious traditions of pre-colonial India to the future of independent India, Modi said. It would have been good if the sacred Sengol was given its due respect and an honourable position after Independence, but it was kept on display as a "walking stick" in Anand Bhawan, Prayagraj.

"Your 'sevak' and our government have brought the Sengol out of Anand Bhawan." He said a question had arisen over the symbol of the transfer of power from the British in 1947 and under the guidance of C Rajagopalachari and Adheenams a virtuous path of power transfer through Sengol was found from out of ancient Tamil culture. 
As a symbol of the transfer of power, special 'Sengol' was made by holy Thiruvaduthurai Adheenam in 1947, he said. "I am delighted that the symbol of India's great tradition, Sengol, will be installed in the new Parliament building," Modi said.

The Congress, which has boycotted the inauguration event, on Friday claimed there is no documentary evidence of Lord Mountbatten, C Rajagopalachari, and Jawaharlal Nehru describing the 'Sengol' as a symbol of the transfer of power from the British to India.

In his remarks, Prime Minister Modi said: "We all know the important role of Tamil Nadu in our independence struggle". In every era, Tamil Nadu has been the centre of Indian nationalism, he said. "The people of Tamil Nadu always had the feeling of service. It is very unfortunate that the contribution of the people of Tamil Nadu in India's independence was not given the importance it should have been given," he said, adding the BJP has started raising this issue prominently. "The people of the country are getting to know what treatment was meted out to the great Tamil tradition," the PM said. 

(With inputs from PTI)