{"id":314822,"date":"2026-02-24T14:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/314822\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T14:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:32:09","slug":"rajaji-honoured-shashi-tharoor-backs-swapping-of-lutyens-statue-with-rajagopalacharis-bust-india-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/314822\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Rajaji Honoured\u2019: Shashi Tharoor Backs Swapping Of Lutyens\u2019 Statue With Rajagopalachari\u2019s Bust | India News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last Updated:February 24, 2026, 14:54 IST<\/p>\n<p>Centre replaced statue of British architect Edwin Lutyens at Rashtrapati Bhavan with the bust of Rajagopalachari, the first and only Indian Governor-General of independent India.<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/dlxczavtqcctuei\/news18\/static\/images\/english\/font.svg\" height=\"30px\" width=\"30px\" alt=\"font\" title=\"font\" class=\"jsx-6cc80bfb3da3f7c2 lazyload\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/web.whatsapp.com\/send?text=%E2%80%98Rajaji%20Honoured%E2%80%99%3A%20Shashi%20Tharoor%20Backs%20Swapping%20Of%20Lutyens%E2%80%99%20Statue%20With%20Rajagopalachari%E2%80%99s%20Bust - %0D%0Ahttps:\/\/www.news18.com\/india\/rajaji-honoured-shashi-tharoor-backs-swapping-of-lutyens-statue-with-rajagopalacharis-bust-9926781.html%3Futm_source%3Dwhatsapp%26utm_medium%3Dsocial_share%26utm_campaign%3Dnw18english%0D%0A %0D%0A Get the latest news anytime, anywhere. Install News18 app for free! %0D%0Ahttps:\/\/onelink.to\/website-share-eng\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" class=\"jsx-6cc80bfb3da3f7c2 sclrnd wapp social_share\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/dlxczavtqcctuei\/news18\/static\/images\/english\/new_share_icon.svg\" alt=\"new share icon\" title=\"new share icon\" width=\"8\" height=\"9\" class=\"jsx-6cc80bfb3da3f7c2 social_share\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/dlxczavtqcctuei\/news18\/static\/images\/english\/new_whatsapp_icon.svg\" alt=\"new whatsapp icon\" title=\"new whatsapp icon\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" class=\"jsx-6cc80bfb3da3f7c2 social_share\"\/><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. (PTI file photo)&#10;\" title=\"Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. (PTI file photo)&#10;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771943528_0_1627283897_news18_logo-1200x800.jpg\" loading=\"eager\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\"jsx-126d89dd10ff78fe jsx-3556621639\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/dlxczavtqcctuei\/news18\/static\/images\/english\/zoom-img.svg\" width=\"28\" height=\"28\" class=\"jsx-126d89dd10ff78fe jsx-3556621639 imgzoomicn tap_to_zoom\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. (PTI file photo)\n<\/p>\n<p><img class=\"jsx-126d89dd10ff78fe jsx-3556621639 flscrnimg\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"0\" class=\"story_para_0\">Differing from other INDIA Bloc MPs, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday praised the government\u2019s move to unveil a bust of Chakravarti Rajagopalachari at Rashtrapati Bhavan.<\/p>\n<p id=\"1\" class=\"story_para_1\">In a post on X, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said he was a \u201cstrong supporter&#8221; of Rajagopalachari\u2019s Swatantra Party during his student days.<\/p>\n<p id=\"2\" class=\"story_para_2\">\u201cI\u2019m truly pleased to see Rajaji honoured by a statue at Rashtrapati Bhavan. He was its first Indian occupant as the only Indian Governor-General of India, before we became a Republic and he yielded his seat to the new President,&#8221; Tharoor wrote.<\/p>\n<p id=\"3\" class=\"story_para_3\">He added that he had long admired Rajagopalachari\u2019s convictions and values, including liberal economics and support for free enterprise combined with social justice, a strong anchoring in Indian civilisation and religious faith without communal bigotry, and a firm belief in constitutional rights and freedoms. He said these principles remain his own and expressed sadness that few follow them today.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">I\u2019m truly pleased to see Rajaji honoured by a statue at Rashtrapati Bhavan. He was its first Indian occupant as the only Indian Governor-General of India, before we became a Republic and he yielded his seat to the new President.I have long admired his convictions and was a\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/exNBJ0IFIN\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/t.co\/exNBJ0IFIN<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShashiTharoor\/status\/2026007305922486472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">February 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Centre replaces Lutyens\u2019 statue with Rajagopalachari\u2019s<\/p>\n<p id=\"4\" class=\"story_para_4\">On Monday, the Centre replaced the statue of British architect Edwin Lutyens at Rashtrapati Bhavan with the bust of Rajagopalachari, the first and only Indian Governor-General of independent India.<\/p>\n<p id=\"5\" class=\"story_para_5\">At the ceremony, a musical rendition of all six stanzas of Vande Mataram was performed.<\/p>\n<p id=\"6\" class=\"story_para_6\">Among those present were Vice President CP Radhakrishnan, Union Health Minister JP Nadda, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Culture and Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan, and members of Rajagopalachari\u2019s family.<\/p>\n<p>PM calls it \u2018mental decolonisation\u2019<\/p>\n<p id=\"7\" class=\"story_para_7\">Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a message read out by Shekhawat, described the replacement as an act of \u201cmental decolonisation.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"8\" class=\"story_para_8\">In a separate post on X, he said the move reflects India\u2019s resolve to honour those who shaped the nation\u2019s destiny and to shed remnants of a colonial mindset. He described Rajagopalachari as a towering scholar, freedom fighter, thinker and administrator whose life embodied integrity, intellect and commitment to the nation.<\/p>\n<p>Handpicked stories, in your inbox<\/p>\n<p>A newsletter with the best of our journalism<\/p>\n<p>submit<\/p>\n<p>Location :<\/p>\n<p>Delhi, India, India<\/p>\n<p>First Published:<\/p>\n<p>February 24, 2026, 14:54 IST<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">News<\/a>  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/india\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">india<\/a>   \u2018Rajaji Honoured\u2019: Shashi Tharoor Backs Swapping Of Lutyens\u2019 Statue With Rajagopalachari\u2019s BustDisclaimer: Comments reflect users\u2019 views, not News18\u2019s. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/disclaimer\/\" class=\"jsx-ba4d8f086a12294f\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Terms of Use<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/privacy_policy\/\" class=\"jsx-ba4d8f086a12294f\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Read More<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Last Updated:February 24, 2026, 14:54 IST Centre replaced statue of British architect Edwin Lutyens at Rashtrapati Bhavan with&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314823,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[307,304,305,306,308,93,61,60,147050,147049,65272],"class_list":["post-314822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-lutyens-statue","tag-rajagopalacharis-bust","tag-shashi-tharoor"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/314823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}