Every emperor wants to build his own capital, and emperor Modi is no different.

Minister Puri has made it clear the whole idea is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “dream project”. In other words, Prime Minister Modi had a dream. Just as Shah Jahan decided to build a grand mausoleum for his wife, Modi wants to build a new capital for his vanity. Every emperor wants to build his own capital, and emperor Modi is no different.

The tender bid document has so many conditions for potential bidders that it seems to be designed to award the contract to a pre-selected party. It will cost a lot of money, resources, cause environmental damage, threaten heritage… all those things for what? Just to satisfy the megalomania of the prime minister?

The Central Vista is heritage made through public money. It is a visual representation of India known across the world. Before undertaking a once-in-a-century project like this, the government should first hold a public consultation and carry out studies by experts to determine what is wrong with the Central Vista buildings and amenities, and what’s the best way to address the problems. We don’t need a Tughlaqi rebuilding of a new capital.

Here’s a nugget for Narendra Modi: Building a new capital in Delhi has often not brought great fortune for its rulers. The temporary office of the Viceroy of India in north Delhi, the Viceregal Lodge, today houses the office of the Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University. A signboard outside tells its history, how the Viceroy worked out of here while the Viceregal Palace, now the Rashtrapati Bhavan, was being built.

The new capital designed by Lutyens and Baker was ready in 1931, but the British didn’t get to enjoy it much, having to leave India 16 years later. The heading above this signboard reads “Dilli Dur Ast” — Delhi is still far. The words were spoken by Nizamuddin Auliya for another ruler of Delhi, Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq, who built Tughlaqabad, but didn’t get much time to enjoy it either.