This refers to the article, “A delayed discovery of Nehru” (December 26) by PDT Acharya. The writer has correctly said that it is wholly irrational to put national icons beyond the pale of objective evaluation. Unfortunately, in India, the tendency is to place national personalities in the category of either god or villain, and nothing in-between. This is precisely what has happened in the case of Jawaharlal Nehru.
Nehru was a great man but he was human too. He had his share of drawbacks, including his idealistic fixations and emotional temperament which often came in the way of a pragmatic approach. He also had qualities that made him a world leader. But his emotional and impractical approach to the problems had, on a number of occasions, come in the way of his objective judgements of many national issues such as negotiations for the independence of the country and the mayhem that occurred in the wake of partition.