A controversy has erupted around a photo exhibition curated by Rehan Vadra at Delhi’s Bikaner House cultural centre, after the venue’s management directed that several images linked to recent protests be removed. The BJP has now targeted Congress, asking why Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has not responded publicly.
Bikaner House, a historic building near India Gate that functions as a public arts and culture space, had granted permission for an exhibition titled No Idea Is Final. Rehan Vadra had applied on June 10, seeking approval for a show focused on nature, wildlife and related themes, and the management cleared it on June 30.
Ahead of the exhibition’s opening on the 21st, more than 100 photographs were displayed, with reports suggesting that around 70–75 images centred on recent protests in Delhi. The management, citing its stated condition that political content would not be permitted, asked that the protest-related photographs be removed. Over 70 images were subsequently taken down.
Rehan Vadra questioned the timing of the directive, saying he had submitted documentation in advance and that the management raised objections only hours before the opening. The venue, however, maintained that permission was limited to nature, art, culture and wildlife, and that political campaigning imagery had no place in the cultural centre.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra defended her son, alleging that the Union government was attempting to suppress young people’s freedom of expression. BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari countered that the application had promised only non-political themes and alleged that political photographs were added later, claiming Rahul Gandhi’s silence—while he comments on other issues from abroad—shows an ongoing power struggle within Congress.
