Chittorgarh: Union Home Minister Amit Shah has launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and the party over an alleged interruption of Vande Mataram during its Independence Day programme in New Delhi. Shah accused the Congress of disrespecting the national song and said people would not forgive what he described as a serious mistake.
Shah questions Congress over national song
Addressing a programme in Rajasthan’s Chittorgarh, where a statue of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was unveiled, Shah said the Congress had failed to give Vande Mataram the respect it deserved.
He referred to the role of the song during India’s freedom struggle, saying thousands of people had faced imprisonment, bullets, lathi charges and even the gallows while raising the slogan.
Shah also alleged that Sonia Gandhi had asked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to stop the song midway during the party’s Independence Day function. He demanded that Gandhi and the Congress apologise to the people.
Congress rejects the allegation
The controversy has triggered a political exchange between the BJP and Congress. Congress has rejected the allegation that Sonia Gandhi sought to stop Vande Mataram, saying her gestures during the programme were related to arranging a chair for Kharge, who had been standing for some time.
The dispute has since grown into a wider political confrontation, with both parties debating the treatment of the national song and the significance of patriotic symbols.
The episode has added another flashpoint to the continuing political rivalry between the BJP and Congress, with Vande Mataram at the centre of the latest dispute.