New Delhi, April 17: A series of letters exchanged between Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru in May 1950, as documented in the book Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, suggest that Patel expressed concerns to Nehru regarding the use of the ‘National Herald’ for fundraising purposes. These letters indicate that Patel cautioned Nehru about “the potential misuse of government influence in financial dealings” and advised against accepting contributions from “questionable” sources.

The old correspondence between Sardar Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru has resurfaced at the heart of political debate, following the Enforcement Directorate’s chargesheet against former Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The charges, tied to alleged money laundering in the National Herald case, have brought renewed attention to Patel’s early warnings about financial misconduct linked to the publication—warnings that now seem strikingly relevant.

In fact, The National Herald has been entangled in controversy since the early days of independent India. Letters exchanged between Sardar Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru in 1950 are frequently referenced to point out that questions around the paper’s financial conduct and political misuse were being raised even then.

In 1950, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel explicitly warned Jawaharlal Nehru about dubious fundraising tactics and the ‘misuse’ of government machinery to prop up the National Herald. These serious concerns revealed Patel’s clear discomfort with the ethical and political implications of such actions. Despite the gravity of the warnings, Nehru apparently chose to brush them aside.

Are Sardar Patel’s decades-old warnings proving to be prophetic? The question is echoing across political debates following the Enforcement Directorate’s chargesheet against Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of orchestrating a “criminal conspiracy” to usurp properties worth Rs 2,000 crore belonging to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the publisher of the National Herald. What began as a stern caution from one of India’s foremost statesmen in 1950 has, according to political analysts referencing Patel’s letters, now spiralled into an allegedly full-blown scandal that “underscores a legacy of alleged misuse of power and political entitlement”.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel raised the red flag in a series of pointed letters to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. On May 5, 1950, Patel wrote to Nehru expressing grave concern over a Rs 75,000 donation to the National Herald from two individuals associated with Himalayan Airways. The airline had reportedly obtained a government contract for night air mail services by circumventing objections from the Indian Air Force. Observers say that it was an early sign of “political favouritism and backroom dealings”.

Patel didn’t mince words. He highlighted that one of the donors, Akhani, was already facing multiple charges of bank fraud. Even more damning was Patel’s accusation that Union Minister Ahmed Kidwai was abusing his official position to collect funds for the Herald, including money from controversial businessmen in Lucknow such as J.P. Srivastava.

Nehru’s reply, sent the same day, was “vague and dismissive”– attempting to pacify Patel without allegedly addressing the core concerns. He mentioned having asked his son-in-law, Feroze Gandhi, then General Manager of the Herald, to look into the matter. According to an analyst, Nehru’s tone as reflected in the letter was non-committal, brushing the issue aside as though it were an unfortunate misunderstanding.

Patel, undeterred, responded the very next day, May 6, 1950. He saw through the deflection as he wrote to Nehru in detail, explaining how certain private companies and their shareholders were involved in the process. Sardar Patel noted, “Some contributions did not come from those involved in running the department. Otherwise, to my knowledge, the number of contributions received was sufficient and involved other individuals as well. The transactions I have referred to are of a different nature. There is no element of charity in them.”

In his follow-up, Nehru again “tried to distance himself from the paper and its finances”, claiming he hadn’t been involved with the National Herald or its fundraising for three years and had passed the responsibility to a woman named Mridula. He admitted “some mistakes may have occurred” but continued to what was seen by many as his attempt to “justify” the questionable transactions as part of a legitimate business proposition, even calling it a matter of “loss and profit” — not charity.

This point was highlighted by BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi who stated that on May 6, 1950, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote a letter to Sardar Patel saying, “Herald is a good business proposition and its preference shares and debentures are not a bad investment.”

It was said during Nehru’s time that the investment made in the National Herald could be profitable. This is a good business investment, so its shares or debentures cannot be considered harmful, said Trivedi referring to correspondence.

The direct implication is that from the very beginning, this investment was linked to profit, business, and property, he added. “Today, the Congress party should be asked this ethical question: when this was always a business plan, how can it suddenly be linked to charity or donations given during the freedom struggle?” he said.

This was the breaking point for Patel.

In his final letter dated May 10, 1950, he made it clear that the issue was about integrity, accountability, and the misuse of political power. As Home Minister, he expressed deep concern over the ‘dishonesty’ surrounding the Herald’s funding and the dubious individuals involved.

He rejected Nehru’s defence outright, calling out the rot at the core of what was being portrayed as a freedom movement legacy.

Sardar Patel wrote, “In light of these events, I do not think there is any benefit in pursuing this matter further. I have already told you how I view these activities, and I doubt that if this happened in any other province and I had any connection to it, I would not accept this situation.”

According to Trivedi, this clearly means that he had become disillusioned and did not want to talk about it again. “Now, Congress should explain what kind of sacrifice and dedication this was,” Trivedi asked.

According to political observers, Patel’s firm stance exposed a deeper malaise — a troubling pattern of entitlement, favouritism, and ethical compromise that would resurface decades later. His warnings, largely ignored at the time, now seem eerily prophetic.

Sydney, April 17: A person has died and 12 others have been infected after contracting Legionnaires’ disease in an outbreak linked to central Sydney, the Department of Health in the Australian state of New South Wales said on Thursday.

There are now 12 confirmed cases of Legionnaires’ disease in people who spent time in central Sydney between March 13 and April 5, up from the six cases that had been diagnosed as of April 10, the department said.

It said that one of the confirmed cases died in the hospital. Of the 12 reported cases, 11 have been hospitalised for treatment.

NSW Health on Thursday urged anyone who spent time in central Sydney and surrounding areas in late March or early April to be aware of symptoms of Legionnaires’ disease, including fever, chills, a cough and shortness of breath.

Legionnaires’ disease is a form of pneumonia caused by infection with Legionella bacteria, which is found naturally in fresh water. NSW Health said that symptoms can develop up to 10 days after exposure, Xinhua news agency reported.

“Outbreaks sometimes occur when bacteria from environmental sources such as cooling towers atop large buildings become contaminated,” Vicky Sheppeard, director of the southeast Sydney local public health unit, said in a statement.

“NSW Health continues to work closely with the City of Sydney to identify, inspect and sample any cooling towers in the CBD potentially implicated in the outbreak. To date, over 165 cooling towers have been inspected and tested,” she said.

According to the World Health Organisation, the Legionnaires’ disease mortality rate can be as high as 80 per cent in untreated immunosuppressed patients.

Most people catch Legionnaires’ disease by inhaling the bacteria from water or soil. Older adults, smokers, and people with weakened immune systems are particularly susceptible to Legionnaires’ disease.

Although Legionnaires’ disease primarily affects the lungs, it occasionally can cause infections in wounds and in other parts of the body, including the heart.

A mild form of Legionnaires’ disease — known as Pontiac fever — can produce fever, chills, headache and muscle aches. Pontiac fever doesn’t infect your lungs, and symptoms usually clear within two to five days.

Mumbai, April 17: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday took strong objection to the Devendra Fadnavis-led state government’s move to introduce Hindi as a compulsory language in Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English schools, saying that “the party will not allow the Centre’s current efforts to ‘Hindi-fy’ everything to succeed in Maharashtra”.

He also announced that the MNS would not tolerate this compulsion while appealing to the state government to immediately withdraw this decision.

In his post on X, Thackeray said: “I request all my Marathi mothers, sisters and brothers in Maharashtra as well as all my brothers and sisters working in Marathi newspapers and Marathi news channels to condemn and oppose this without any debate! And yes, if other political parties in Maharashtra have even a little love for the Marathi language, they will also oppose this. Today they are forcing languages, tomorrow they will issue other forced fatwas.”

He further said: “We will not allow the Central government’s current efforts to ‘Hindi-fy’ everything to succeed in this state. Hindi is not a national language. It is a state language like other languages in the country. Why should it be taught in Maharashtra from the very beginning? Whatever your trilingual formula is, limit it to government affairs, do not bring it to education.

“The formation of linguistic regions was done in this country, and it lasted for so many years. But why have you just now started imposing the language of another region on Maharashtra?

“Every language is beautiful and there is a long history and tradition behind its formation. And its respect should be maintained in the state where it is the language. Just as Marathi should be respected by other speakers in Maharashtra, so should all speakers of that language be respected in other states. It is our insistence that even the Marathi people living in other states should consider the language of that state as their own. But if you are going to ignore this and try to ruin the linguistic tradition of this country, we do not accept it,” the MNS chief said.

“We are Hindus but not Hindi! If you try to paint Maharashtra as Hindi, then there is bound to be a struggle in Maharashtra. If you look at all this, you will realise that the government is deliberately creating this struggle. Is this all an attempt to create a struggle between Marathi and non-Marathi in the upcoming elections and take advantage of it? The non-Marathi speakers of this state should also understand this plan of the government. It is not that they have any special love for your language. They want to burn their own political coals by inciting you,” he warned.

“Today, the state’s financial situation is dire, the government has no money left for schemes. Marathi youth are waiting for jobs. They (MahaYuti alliance) said before the elections that they would waive off loans, but later they did not do so. Therefore, the farmers who were hoping for loan waiver are disappointed. And it is as if the industry has turned its back on Maharashtra. When there is nothing to say or show concretely, then the British mantra of divide and rule is being used here, steps are being taken by the government to raise suspicions,” the MNS chief said.

He further wondered: “Well, why force Hindi in Maharashtra? Will you force Hindi in a southern state like this? And if you do, the governments there will be outraged. The state government and its constituent parties tolerate all this silently, so this is being forced here. We don’t know about the rest and we don’t care, but the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena will not tolerate this.”

Raj Thackeray said that the school administration should take note that the compulsion to learn Hindi language from first grade will not be tolerated in Maharashtra. Hindi books from the school curriculum will not be sold in shops and schools and will not be allowed to distribute those books to students.

“In every state, only their official language should be respected! Tomorrow, will Marathi language be taught from the first grade in all states? No, right? Then why this compulsion here? I appeal to the government not to stress this issue. But if you are going to impose Hindi, then the struggle is inevitable and only the government will be responsible for it. Therefore, the government should respect the sentiments of the people and order to immediately withdraw this decision,” he said.