Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, delivered a sharp critique of the BJP during a debate commemorating 150 years of Vande Mataram. Kharge asserted that the ruling party’s “ideological predecessors” collaborated with British authorities while Congress leaders faced oppression and chanted Vande Mataram. He emphasized, “When the non-cooperation movement started in 1921, Congress members were going to jail chanting Vande Mataram. What were you doing? You were working for the British.”
His comments followed Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s accusation that the Congress party’s decision to feature only two stanzas of Vande Mataram as the national song was rooted in “politics of appeasement.” Kharge initiated his address with the slogan Vande Mataram, crediting his party for elevating it as a powerful symbol during India’s freedom struggle. “We have always been singing Vande Mataram,” he insisted, adding that even those who previously did not sing it have now begun to do so. “It is the power of Vande Mataram. It is a national festival, not a debate,” he stated while accusing BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, of disrespecting India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.
Kharge outlined that the choice to use only two stanzas of Vande Mataram was a decision made collectively by notable leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, and Rabindranath Tagore. He remarked, “I heard the PM blame Nehru for the stanzas being removed… You are insulting all these tall leaders. It was their combined decision. Why do you target Nehruji alone?”
In the Rajya Sabha during this heated discussion, Congress MPs Sonia Gandhi, Digvijaya Singh, and Jairam Ramesh were present. Kharge also highlighted pressing national issues that require attention in Parliament, stating, “We all say Vande Mataram and bow to this motherland, but here, the rights of weaker sections, including Dalits, tribals, and the impoverished, are undermined daily. Some of the government’s favored allies continue to dominate critical sectors, evident in airports, ports, power, transport, media, and essential services.”
Original Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/congress-members-went-to-jail-chanting-vande-mataram-you-worked-for-british-mallikarjun-kharge-10412055/
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Publish Date: 2025-12-10 05:03:00
