NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday accused the Congress of “appeasement” and defying the law by deciding to sing only two stanzas of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’.
A day after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) decided to sing only two stanzas of Vande Mataram, Shah described the decision as “anti-national” and accused the Congress of reviving the politics of appeasement pursued in 1937.
“Yesterday, the Congress Working Committee took an anti-national decision. Reiterating its 1937 resolution, the Congress has decided to sing only two stanzas of ‘Vande Mataram’,” Shah said. He accused the Congress of repeating the same politics that it pursued in 1937.
“I wish to remind the nation that by deciding to split ‘Vande Mataram’ in 1937 for the sake of Muslim appeasement, the Congress laid the foundation for the country's partition. Today, the government led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has strengthened national unity by rectifying that historic blunder of the Congress and has also accorded it legal status.”
Taking a sharp swipe at the Congress, Shah said its decision to sing only two stanzas of Vande Mataram had exposed its “politics of appeasement”.
Describing the CWC decision as an insult to millions of freedom fighters, Shah said, “This decision by the Congress once again exposes its politics of appeasement. The Congress has not only insulted this great composition by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay but has also disrespected the millions of freedom fighters who sacrificed everything for the country's independence”.
Continuing his attack on the Congress over what he termed an anti-national decision on Vande Mataram, Shah said, “On one hand, the Congress party is implementing its 1937 resolution today, while on the other, it is rejecting a law enacted by Parliament.” He also accused Rahul Gandhi and the Congress of promoting the politics of appeasement.
“It is astonishing that under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, the Congress party is once again promoting the politics of appeasement,” he asserted. Shah said the nation had already suffered the consequences of the historic decision to divide Vande Mataram into two parts.
Calling upon people to unite against the CWC decision on the singing of Vande Mataram, Shah said, “Now, the country must unite and send a clear message against this decision by the Congress – the politics of appeasement will no longer be tolerated. The Bharatiya Janata Party strongly condemns this decision by the Congress party”.
BJP chief Nitin Nabin also slammed the Congress over its decision to sing only two stanzas of Vande Mataram. In a post on X, Nabin said the same insult to the national song was reflected in an “individual's conduct” a few days ago.
In a post on X in Hindi, the BJP chief said, “This insult to the sacred invocation of 'Bharat Mata' is a disdain for those thousands of martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the nation, keeping this very song in their consciousness”.
Further attacking the Congress over its decision, Nabin said, “The Congress has now become the new Muslim League today. This insult to the sacred invocation of Bharat Mata is contempt for those thousands of martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the nation. This is not merely a political defence, but proof of the hunger for the vote bank before which the Congress has repeatedly pawned the nation’s self respect”.
Pradeep Bhandari, one of the co-convenors of the BJP central media wing, also lashed out at the Congress in a post, accusing the party of being governed by a “Dimagi Naxals” intellectual system.
“With this decision, now it is clear that Sonia Gandhi on the day of Independence was furious over complete Vande Mataram being recited at Congress headquarters,” he alleged. He further accused the Congress of continuing to reject patriotism in order to appease its vote bank.