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‘Anti-national’: Amit Shah on Congress decision to sing first two stanzas of Vande Mataram
A fresh political row erupted over Vande Mataram after Amit Shah attacked Congress for deciding to sing only two stanzas, while Jairam Ramesh hit back
Union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Congress over its decision to sing only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram at party events, calling it “anti-national” and accusing the party of pursuing vote-bank appeasement.
Shah’s statement came a day after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) decided to abide by its 1937 resolution on Vande Mataram and sing only two stanzas of the national song, instead of its full rendition, at all party events.
Shah links Congress’ 1937 stand to Partition, vote-bank politics
In a statement posted on X, Shah said the Congress decision was an “open defiance of the law” and linked the 1937 decision to the sentiments that eventually led to Partition in 1947.
“...The CWC has taken a surprising and anti-national decision. Following their party’s 1937 Resolution, they have decided to sing only two stanzas of the great Vande Mataram song. I want to remind the entire country that in 1937, the Congress Party, for the sake of Muslim appeasement, split Vande Mataram…laying the foundation for the country’s partition, and from there, the two-nation theory gained strength,” Shah said.
The home minister also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government had corrected the “historic mistake” in the 150th anniversary year of Vande Mataram by deciding that the song would be sung in full at government programmes. He said the decision had also been given legal backing.
“...A decision was made to sing it completely in all government programs, and this decision has also been given legal backing. The Congress Party made the decision yesterday to disregard exactly this. This decision of the Congress only confirms their extreme policy of appeasement,” Shah said.
Shah accused Congress for an act insults national song
He accused the Congress of kowtowing to minorities and said its decision had insulted Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s creation as well as freedom fighters who went to the gallows chanting Vande Mataram.
“For the sake of vote banks, they have not only insulted Bankim Babu’s immortal creation but also insulted those millions of martyrs who went to the gallows for the country’s freedom while chanting the slogan of Vande Mataram…Today, the Congress Party is adhering to its party’s 1937 Resolution and rejecting Parliament’s Act. Under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, the Congress Party is once again vigorously advancing the politics of appeasement,” he said.
Shah also appealed to people not to allow themselves to be divided over the issue, saying the country had already suffered the consequences of the decision to divide Vande Mataram.
Congress hits back, calls Shah’s remarks ‘fake nationalism’
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh hit back, calling Shah’s statement “fake and untruth nationalism”. He said the law did not prevent political parties from singing the original version of Vande Mataram.
“Party chief Mallikarjun Kharge has clarified what is our stand vis-a-vis Vande Mataram. It is a non-issue and a desperate attempt of the BJP to divert attention. We will stick to our narrative of students’ issues and people’s issues,” Ramesh said.
There are indications that Congress-ruled states, including Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Karnataka, may also opt for the original version rather than the full song. Asked if the party had asked its chief ministers to play the original version, Ramesh said, “Just wait and see what happens.”
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