The TN-to-Nehru scepter will be on display in the new parliament

 

The DMK government in Tamil Nadu and the party's partners will abstain from the opening of the new Parliament building, but the state will be strongly represented by a scepter.

According to Union home minister Amit Shah, a gold-plated silver "Sengol" (meaning scepter), which was given to India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru by the Thiruvaduthurai Adheenam (in the current Myladudurai district) as a symbol of the handover of power from the British, will be placed in a prominent location in the new Parliament building. On May 28, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give it a formal opening.

The last Governor-General of India, C. Rajagopalachari, who was from the Madras Presidency and the present-day Krishnagiri district, was consulted by Viceroy Lord Mountbatten after asking Nehru about the ceremonial to be followed for the transfer, according to Shah's account of the incident. Rajaji made the suggestion that a sengol might be given to a king.

According to S Jayakumar, an expert on South East Asian history, "Every king is given a Sengol, which gives them the authority to protect dharma and be on the path of righteousness."

He disputed Shah's claim that this custom was unique to the Chola dynasty. Since the majority of adheenams did not exist until the 14th century, linking the Cholas and adheenams is incorrect. In Tamil culture, a sengol is a very old emblem of morality and Dharma, and it is stated that a king should reign in accordance with this symbolism.

According to Jayakumar, there is a separate chapter called Sengonmai in the Thirukkural (couplets authored by the Tamil philosopher Thiruvalluvar) where couplet 545 reads, "Where king, who righteous laws regards, the scepter wields, there fall the showers, rich abundance crowns the fields." So there is a long-standing custom of having a Sengol at the king's court. The Shilpa Sastras also references the iconography of this Sengol. Contrary to popular belief, the current Sengol who will be present during the opening of the new Parliament is not from the Chola period.

It is reported that Rajaji contacted the Thiruvaduthurai Adheenam, a Saivaite Mutt with a history dating back more than 500 years. The 20th Gurumaha Sannithanam Sri La Sri Ambalavana Desika Swamigal gave the order for a 5-foot-tall Sengol with a nandi (bull) on it.

The Sengol was created by Chennai-based jewelers Vummidi Bangaru Chetty, who are still well-known. Vummidi Ethirajulu, 96, and Vummidi Sudhakar, 88, both recall making the Sengol, according to Shah.

A delegation of three, consisting of an Odhuvar (singer), a nadaswaram player, and a deputy high priest of the Adheenamm, went from Tamil Nadu to Delhi to carry out the business. After giving the Sengol to Lord Mountbatten, they brought it back and used holy water to purify it. On the evening of August 14, 1947, the Sengol was carried in procession to Nehru's home, where the high priest presented it to him while singing a song. Tirugnana Sambandar, a saint of Tamil music from the seventh century who was also a native of modern-day Mayiladudurai, wrote the song.

Eight Adheenam members will go to Delhi tonight to take part in the opening ceremony, including the present seer, the 24th Gurumaha Sannithanam Sri La Sri Ambalavana Desika Paramachariya Swamigal. "Only Masamani Pillai is still living who was present when Rajaji contacted our Adheenam in 1947. He is 97 years old," a member of the Adheenam tribe who wished to remain anonymous claimed. "We dislike the spotlight. The followers of our Adheenam included the Cholas, Cheras, and Pandiyas. Kamaraj, who has never been to an adheenam, twice came to see us. Numerous VIPs keep coming to receive blessings, but we do not permit photos.

He stated that the ceremonies used to transfer the Sengol to Modi from the current seer may be similar to those used to transfer it to Nehru, but the programme has not yet been completed.

The great-grandson of Chetty and co-owner of Vummidi Sri Jewellery, Vummidi Shailesh Raj, said that the scepter was not a family legend that had been passed down through the years. Instead, they had learned about the scepter only recently, thanks to an article that appeared in a local Tamil magazine. One of our family members noticed it, and Raj and his family wondered how they had missed it. "throughout the years, we have received orders to create these items from all throughout the nation, but we have not recorded it. We were unaware that the golden cane that Nehru is holding in the Prayagraj Museum is actually a sengol that we made. 

Sadly, there is no trace of it in writing. When Ethirajulu's uncle created the Sengol in 1947, he had to be in his 20s. He was thankfully able to remember how it was assigned to us when they came to us right away. We are honored that our work has become important on a national level and crosses so many boundaries.