Hyderabad, Nov 14 (IANS): Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu Friday paid rich tributes to Jawaharlal Nehru and said the legacy of India's first prime minister belonged to the entire nation and not to any particular political party.

The minister said it was unfortunate that the Congress wanted to appropriate Nehru's legacy despite its governments both at the centre and in states being cradles of corruption.

Naidu was speaking after garlanding a Nehru statue at Nellore town in Andhra Pradesh.

The minister said the Congress had become so narrow minded that it did not invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to an international conference in connection with Nehru's 125th birth anniversary.

Naidu said the legacies of leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel should be respected beyond the narrow prism of politics.

"Pandit Nehru was a true democrat, a visionary and a man of letters whose books like the 'Discovery of India' and his letters to chief ministers and his daughter are classical accounts of the history of our country, the world events and post-independence initiatives," he said.

"His understanding of the world order and the role India should play laid the foundations of our country's foreign policy," he added.

As the first prime minister, he laid foundations for the development of the country in the fields of science, economic development, including the promotion of agriculture and industries, Naidu said.