BATUKESHWAR DUTT

The grand old Parliament, witness to the India story as it unfolded since 1927, is set to fade into pages of history as Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates the new building on Sunday. From the first steps towards self-rule to the dawn of Independence, and the country's emergence as a nuclear power and beyond, the grand old Parliament building has been a constant in the country's journey for almost a century.

Revered today as India's temple of democracy, the old Parliament House has for these nine-and-a-half decades witnessed the imperial rule of the British and its chamber has heard the echoes of bombs hurled by revolutionaries Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt in a bid to attain freedom.

As the country approaches the landmark event of 75 years of independence, people not only need to retell their inspirational stories of martyrdom, valour and indomitable spirit, but "we also need to give them their due place in the annals of our history", he said.

The current building has been witness to historic and epoch-changing events -- be it revolutionaries Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt throwing bombs to "wake up" the colonial rulers or the country's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru making his famous "tryst with destiny" speech on the midnight of August 14-15, 1947.

Rai, the Minister of State for Home and the Bihar BJP chief, made a statement to this effect on Saturday after paying a visit to the house where Dutt stayed after Independence.

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who was also present at the event, said one of the major achievements of India's independence was that it did not become a theocracy.