Amidst the controversy revolving around the Vande Mataram, a Congress MP said on Monday that the national song is India’s soul and “there can be no debate on it.”
Referring to the attack by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the country’s first and former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, she said that the government should fix time to settle the matter “once and for all.”
“The truth is that Modi is no longer the prime minister he once was. The truth is, it is beginning to show. His self-confidence is declining. His policies are weakening the country, so what else can he do but talk about the past? Those in the party (BJP) are silent because, deep down, they too are ashamed. Today, the people of the country are unhappy, distressed, and surrounded by problems, and you are not solving them,” she said.
During the special discussion in the Lok Sabha, the Congress MP argued that the ruling party had convened a “needless” debate on the song with a dual purpose—to shape the political narrative ahead of the Bengal Assembly elections and to introduce fresh allegations against freedom fighters as a means of diverting public attention.
“There are two reasons for the debate on Vande Mataram today. One, elections are coming up in West Bengal. In such a situation, our prime minister wants to establish his role, and second, those who fought the freedom struggle sacrificed for the country—this government wants an opportunity to impose new accusations on them. By doing this, the government wants to divert the country’s attention from the pressing issues concerning the public,” she added.
She alleged that the government was attempting to obscure the country’s real condition, claiming that young people are grappling with widespread exam paper leaks and rising unemployment, while inflation has surged to unbearable levels.
“Why are we not discussing this in the House? What is happening with reservations? Why are we not discussing that here? When it comes to women, big announcements are made, but no concrete steps are being taken to improve their actual conditions,” she said.
meanwhile, as quoted by the ANI, On the debate on Vande Mataram in Parliament, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Priyanka Chaturvedi says, “They have made a political agenda out of a slogan which has been associated with the proud history of the country. The slogan integrated the country against the British… Yesterday, the opposition exposed the fabricated facts that were presented in the Parliament by the government. Vande Bharat is a slogan that still resonates with the people of the country… They think they will benefit in some way in the West Bengal elections, but seeing the debate yesterday, the correct version of history has come out before the people of the country. “
BJP MP Manoj Tiwari says, and ANI quotes, “Now they are not fighting for the country, now Congress is fighting against the country. Vande Mataram was bifurcated by this very Congress… Priyanka Gandhi is opposing Vande Mataram; she is opposing the discussion on Vande Mataram. When the Prime Minister started the discussion on Vande Mataram, the opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was not even present in the House…”
