Congress recalls Nehru's role in emergence of sovereign Austria

The Congress on Tuesday, 9 July, recalled the key role India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru played in the early fifties in the emergence of a sovereign and neutral Austria, and said those "suffering from Nehruphobia" like Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also do well to recall it.

Ahead of Modi's Austria visit, Congress general secretary, in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh said the Republic of Austria was established fully only on 26 October 1955, which is celebrated as its National Day and one person who was critical to this becoming a reality was none other than the man "Mr. Modi loves to hate and defame".

"Dr. Hans Kochler, a noted Austrian academic, has written about the key role Jawaharlal Nehru played in the early fifties in the emergence of a sovereign and neutral Austria after a decade of occupation by the victorious World War II powers," Ramesh said.

One of Nehru's most ardent global admirers was the legendary Bruno Kreisky, who was chancellor of Austria during 1970-83, he said.

"In 1989, Dr. Kreisky recalled Nehru thus: 'When the history of this century is written, and that of the men who have put their stamp on it one of the greatest and finest chapters will be the story of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. It will be a part of India's most modern history... Very early Nehru had become one of my instructors," Ramesh said.

The Congress leader also shared Kochler's retrospective for those interested in diplomatic history.

"Those suffering from Nehruphobia - like our non-biological PM and, especially since 2019, our erudite and dapper external affairs minister - will also do well to recall it," Ramesh said in his post on X.

After concluding his engagements in Russia on 9 July, Modi will leave for Austria on the first visit by an Indian prime minister to that country in over 40 years.