Watch | At new Parliament building inauguration, PM Modi bows before ‘Sengol’ as mark of respect

PM Modi along with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla then installed the ‘Sengol’ near the Lok Sabha Speaker’s chair. Birla also accompanied Modi during the puja ceremony.

A day ahead of the inauguration of the new Parliament, the Prime Minister met the Adheenam seers from Tamil Nadu, who handed the “Sengol” to him. He met the priests, who flew down to the national capital at his official residence and sought their blessings.

Slamming the Congress for relegating the “holy spectre” — ‘Sengol’ — as a “walking stick” at a private museum in Allahabad, PM Modi said the Sengol was a symbol of the transfer of power from the British in 1947 and should have got due respect after Independence

The Sengol holds significance because it connected the “glorious traditions of pre-colonial India to the future of independent India”, he said.

The Sengol sceptre, measuring five feet in length, is made from silver and gold. As per the government, it was handed over to Nehru by Lord Mountbatten on August 14, 1947, symbolising transfer of power.

On Friday, the Congress had said that there is no documentary evidence that Lord Mountbatten, C Rajagopalachari and Jawaharlal Nehru had described the ‘Sengol’ as a symbol of the transfer of power from the British to India.

From the homepage

Exclusive | Bike skidded, rider died on spot before bus ran over it in Kurnool tragedy: Pillion rider tells police

Record-breaking Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli power India to nine-wicket win, prevent Australia’s series sweep in Sydney

Suspect in Assam railway track blast gunned down in police encounter