More than six decades after his passing, India’s former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s legacy continues to be subjected to targeted disinformation—much of it propagated because of political motivation and amplified through social media.
On his 61st death anniversary, here’s a list of widely circulated myths and politically motivated falsehoods about India’s first Prime Minister—debunked by fact-checkers but still thriving on social media and public discourse.
False claim about Nehru attending an RSS shakha
One of the most widely shared images claimed that Nehru once attended a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) shakha.
A now-deactivated Facebook page, posted an image with the message, “This photograph was procured with great difficulty. This is Nehru ji standing at an RSS shakha. Now please tell us if Nehru ji was also a saffron terrorist” (translated).
While the photograph is genuine and features Nehru, the context is fabricated, according to Alt News.
The image dates back to 1939 in Naini, Uttar Pradesh, and shows Nehru wearing a white cap.
RSS uniforms since their inception in 1925 have featured black caps—not white. Nehru was not attending an RSS meeting.
Fake quote: “I am Hindu by accident of birth”
A widely circulated statement falsely attributed to Nehru reads, “I am English by education, Muslim by culture and Hindu merely by accident.”
BJP leaders, including Amit Malviya and national spokesperson Sambit Patra, repeated this line in public forums, including in a Republic TV debate.
Fact-checking by Alt News traced this quote back to Hindu Mahasabha leader NB Khare, who claimed in 1959 that Nehru had written it in his autobiography.
But this line does not appear anywhere in Nehru’s published works, according to Alt News.
Letter accusing Bose of being a war criminal
Social media has repeatedly circulated an alleged letter from Nehru to British PM Clement Attlee, branding Subhas Chandra Bose a “war criminal.”
The letter, dated December 27, 1945, supposedly shows Nehru urging British authorities to detain Bose—despite Bose’s reported death in August 1945.
Alt News debunked this narrative, revealing that the letter was never authored by Nehru.
The claim originates from a testimony by Shyamlal Jain, Nehru’s former stenographer, before the Khosla Commission in 1970.
Both Nehru and Asaf Ali—where the letter was said to be dictated—were not in Delhi on the claimed date, as reported by Alt News.
Falsehood about currency notes featuring Netaji
Another viral post claimed that the Nehru government “scrapped” Rs 5 notes bearing the image of Subhas Chandra Bose to erase his legacy.
The image depicted a currency note supposedly demonetised under Nehru’s rule.
Alt News clarified that these notes were never legal tender.
They were issued by the Azad Hind Bank in 1944 in Yangon, Myanmar, to support the Azad Hind Fauj’s war efforts. Therefore, the claim that Nehru’s government demonetised them is baseless.
Misleading image claiming a mob thrashed Nehru
A photograph circulated online alleges that Nehru was physically attacked by a mob following India’s defeat in the 1962 Sino-Indian war.
The image was very frequently circulated on social media, with the earliest instance from 2013.
Alt News found that the image was taken in January 1962, prior to the war, at the Congress plenary session in Patna.
A stampede had broken out, and Nehru attempted to restore order before being restrained by security personnel. The incident had no connection to the war or public backlash.
Misrepresentation on Indian football team’s barefoot play
Another widely-shared image juxtaposes Indian footballers playing barefoot at the 1948 Olympics with a photograph of Nehru descending from an airplane with his pet dog.
The posts falsely suggested that while the Prime Minister pampered his pet with air travel, Indian athletes lacked basic facilities like shoes.
Alt News investigated and found that the team chose to play barefoot—not due to financial constraints—but because they were used to it. It was only later, due to changes in international rules, that playing with boots became mandatory.
Doctored tweet targeting Priyanka Gandhi Vadra
A manipulated tweet from August 2021 falsely claimed that Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra inadvertently admitted that Nehru had illicit relations with his bodyguard’s wife.
The altered post read: “...he covered him with a blanket and went to his room to sleep with his wife.”
The original tweet, posted in 2019 on Nehru’s birth anniversary, simply narrated an anecdote highlighting Nehru’s compassion, with no such innuendo.
The viral screenshot was a doctored version intended to malign Nehru’s image.
Rudranil Ghosh and Jawaharlal Nehru
X/@ActorRudranil, WikipediaFalse claims of Nehru deliberately moving the capital
Adding to the growing pile of misinformation surrounding India’s first Prime Minister, BJP leader and actor Rudranil Ghosh’s comment was unique.
Speaking during a recent podcast, Ghosh alleged that Nehru deliberately moved the capital away from Bengal to New Delhi to diminish the influence of Bengal’s iconic figures.
“Nehru ji knew if the capital remained here, the hangover of Netaji, Rabindranath Tagore and others towering over him would be there. So he took away the capital,” Ghosh claimed.
The Telegraph Online had reported the capital of British India was moved from Calcutta (now Kolkata) to Delhi not under Jawaharlal Nehru, but by the British themselves in 1911, during the Delhi Durbar held under King George V.
At the time, Nehru was a 22-year-old student at Cambridge University with no role in the governance of India. The decision was driven by administrative considerations and colonial strategy—not by nationalist politics or personal insecurities.