Pawan Khera slams Bikaner House over alleged censorship of Raihan Vadra’s artworks

Congress leader Pawan Khera has criticised Bikaner House in Delhi after Raihan Vadra, son of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, alleged that the venue’s management asked him to remove dozens of photographs documenting protests from his art exhibition.

The controversy erupted hours before the opening of Vadra’s exhibition, ‘No Idea Is Final’, scheduled for Wednesday evening. Vadra claimed that the management objected to the content of several artworks and also asked him to remove two photographs of the Indian Tricolour.

In a post on Instagram, Vadra said he had refused to take down the photographs of the national flag. He added that the exhibition would proceed with the remaining works and that he would consider finding another venue to display the complete collection of protest photographs.

Reacting to the alleged censorship, Khera, chairman of the Congress’s All India Congress Committee (AICC) Media and Publicity Department, questioned why photographs documenting student protests were considered objectionable.

Khera claimed that 74 artworks, nearly half of the exhibition, had been removed because they were deemed political. He said the photographs documented protests and were neither derogatory nor inflammatory.

He also pointed out that one of the works Vadra had fought to retain was a photograph of the Indian national flag. Describing the removal of the artworks as an act of censorship, Khera questioned why photographs of protests and the Tricolour had become a matter of concern.

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram also criticised the Bikaner House administration, describing its behaviour as “obtuse” and “churlish” in a post on X.

The dispute has brought attention to the alleged removal of politically themed photographs from Vadra’s exhibition, with Congress leaders questioning the decision to restrict the display.

The exhibition’s opening was scheduled for Wednesday at 7 pm, according to Vadra’s Instagram post. Vadra said he would seek another venue if necessary to display the full collection.