PANAJI: The Goa BJP on Monday accused the Congress of insulting the national song Vande Mataram during its Independence Day programme, with party Chief Spokesperson and Vasco MLA Krishna Salkar alleging that senior Congress leaders displayed “double standards” over the issue.
Addressing a press conference, Salkar alleged that Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders were uncomfortable during the rendition of Vande Mataram and questioned why the song was allegedly interrupted.
He claimed that the incident had been witnessed widely and referred to an alleged statement by a Congress worker acknowledging that party leaders had stopped the rendition before it was completed. “I congratulate them as some national spirit or nationalism remains in them, and that is why they completed it,” he said.
Salkar stressed the historical significance of Vande Mataram, saying the song had played an important role in India's freedom struggle by bringing people together and fostering patriotism. “Vande Mataram was a great binding force, and that is why during our independence struggle, this song played an extremely important role,” he said.
He recalled the contributions of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and Rabindranath Tagore and said Vande Mataram represented the national sentiment of the country.
Salkar also criticised the Congress over its 1937 decision to restrict the rendition of Vande Mataram to two stanzas. “They decided to sing only two stanzas of it, declaring it ‘secular’, implying that the rest of the tribute to the motherland was non-secular,” he said.
Drawing a political parallel with Partition, Salkar alleged, “Just as these Congress leaders cut Vande Mataram into two pieces, similarly in 1947, they were at the forefront of dividing the country into two pieces.”
He said the BJP was proud of promoting the complete national song at its programmes and claimed that the party and BJP-led governments regularly sing the full version of Vande Mataram.
The BJP leader also questioned the Congress leadership over its alleged conduct during the programme. “Yesterday, the entire nation of 140 crore people saw how uncomfortable Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi were, how restless they were, and how they tried to stop it,” he alleged. “Why stop when someone is bowing to the motherland?” he questioned.
Salkar further demanded that the Congress clarify its position on Vande Mataram.
“Congress needs to clarify these things and admit if they are against Vande Mataram and that they do not like Vande Mataram,” he said.
He said the national song instilled pride and patriotism among citizens and urged Congress leaders to apologise over what he termed an insult to the national song.
“For this insult, they must apologise to the entire nation and its people, as they have insulted the national song,” Salkar said.
