“Bikaner House Discusses Why Photos by Priyanka Gandhi’s Son Were Removed: Political Messaging”

A day after Raihan Vadra, the son of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, claimed that the administration of the Rajasthan government-operated Bikaner House in Delhi forced him to remove most of the images in his exhibition just hours before the event began on Wednesday evening, venue representatives have reacted.

Bikaner House stated that the venue’s exhibitions emphasise wildlife and culture, noting that Raihan Vadra’s photographs do not belong to either category. They mentioned that the photos were requested to be removed because they contained political messages.

“Exhibitions hosted at the venue are meant to focus on culture and wildlife. Raihan Vadra has held exhibitions at Bikaner House on several occasions in the past. However, this time, the photographs that were asked to be taken down did not fall under either category and instead carried political messaging,” Bikaner House officials told the media.

Vadra’s showcase, named ‘No Idea Is Final’, captures the recent demonstrations in Delhi. “The photographs were of youth protests in Delhi. Apparently the content is ‘objectionable’,” Raihan Vadra wrote on Instagram.

Vadra stated that he was requested to remove 75 of the 105 photographs from the exhibition or risk cancellation. These included two displaying the Tiranga (tricolour) or national flag. He initially declined to remove those two photographs specifically. Raihan mentioned that Bikaner House staff eventually removed one of the two images when he exited the venue. A total of 74 photographs were deleted.

Priyanka Gandhi described Bikaner House’s action as “absurd.” She argued that the incident reflected attempts to silence young people across the country. She said the photographs were a visual documentation of the protests and contained no commentary or derogatory material. She added that such restrictions raised questions about freedom of expression and democracy, warning that other artists could face similar treatment.