Kolkata, Aug 16: BJP’s West Bengal unit on Sunday held protest rallies in Kolkata and Siliguri over the alleged “disrespect” shown to the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ by Congress leaders during an Independence Day programme in New Delhi, turning the controversy into a street-level political issue in the state.
BJP Yuva Morcha state president and minister of state (independent charge) Indranil Khan led a rally from Esplanade to Moulali in central Kolkata, accusing Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi of insulting Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s iconic composition.
Addressing reporters during the rally, Khan said ‘Vande Mataram’ was not merely a song but was deeply linked to India’s freedom struggle and people’s emotions.
“This is West Bengal, the cradle of India’s freedom struggle. It was on this soil that Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote the timeless composition Vande Mataram,” he said.
Khan alleged that gestures of Rahul Gandhi during the rendition and Sonia Gandhi’s subsequent departure from the venue amounted to “gross disrespect” to the national song and the freedom fighters who drew inspiration from it.
“This is an insult to West Bengal, to Bengalis and to the entire country,” he said, adding that the BJP’s youth wing had taken to the streets to register its protest.
The minister also questioned how Congress leaders could allegedly show such “disrespect” to a song associated with India’s freedom movement.
“Where have these people come from? Mars?” Khan said, attacking the Congress leadership.
The BJP’s protest came a day after senior party leaders accused Sonia Gandhi of objecting to the singing of the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’ at an Independence Day function at Congress headquarters in New Delhi.
Congress, however, has rejected the allegation, maintaining that there was no attempt to interrupt or stop the singing of the complete version of ‘Vande Mataram’.
The party said Gandhi was only asking for a chair for Kharge, who had been standing for some time.
The controversy has since acquired a wider political dimension in West Bengal, with the BJP demanding an apology from Sonia Gandhi and threatening protests across the state.
BJP leader and actor Mithun Chakraborty also condemned the alleged incident, while party leader Locket Chatterjee said the full rendition of ‘Vande Mataram’ should be respected in accordance with the rules governing the national song.
“There is a rule and a law across the country that the entire rendition of ‘Vande Mataram’ should be sung. Unfortunately, they (Congress) do not even follow the rules of the country,” Chatterjee said.
BJP workers also held a protest in Siliguri in north Bengal against what they described as the Congress’ “insult” to ‘Vande Mataram’.
The BJP has sought to frame the controversy around nationalism, the freedom movement and the legacy of Bankim Chandra, themes that carry particular political resonance in West Bengal.
The Congress, on the other hand, has sought to dismiss the BJP’s charge as a misrepresentation of the episode, insisting that no attempt was made to stop the rendition of the national song.(PTI)
