"Vande Mataram" Row: Bankim's Descendant Demands Sonia Gandhi's Apology!
"Vande Mataram" Row: Bankim's Descendant Demands Sonia Gandhi's Apology!
A major political row erupts as Bankim Chattopadhyay's descendant demands Sonia Gandhi's apology over an alleged attempt to stop "Vande Mataram". Congress denies, but the controversy ignites debate on national pride.
A significant political controversy has erupted following an incident at a Congress event where a video allegedly shows party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge making gestures that were interpreted as an attempt to stop the rendition of "Vande Mataram." This has prompted Sumitro Chatterjee, a BJP MLA and direct descendant of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, the composer of the national song, to demand an apology from Sonia Gandhi. Chatterjee, in a letter to Gandhi, expressed his outrage, stating he was writing as an ordinary citizen, a patriot, and Bankim Chandra's descendant.
He labeled the alleged action as "shameless repetition" of past conduct by the Congress party regarding the revered song.
The Congress, however, has vehemently denied these allegations, clarifying that Sonia Gandhi was merely asking for a chair for party president Mallikarjun Kharge and not attempting to halt the song.
Invoking the historical and emotional significance of "Vande Mataram," Chatterjee highlighted its role as a "mantra that initiated the nation into the religion of patriotism," a description famously given by Sri Aurobindo. He argued that any reluctance to allow the full rendition of the song in free India constitutes an insult to the sacrifices of countless freedom fighters, including figures like Khudiram Bose.
Chatterjee meticulously recalled the song's integral role in India's freedom movement, citing Rabindranath Tagore's rendition at the 1896 Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress and Sarala Devi Chaudhurani's recitation at the 1905 Benares Congress session. He also mentioned supporters of Bal Gangadhar Tilak singing it during his 1909 sedition trial and nationalist students at Hyderabad's Osmania University using it as a rallying cry in 1938 despite British restrictions.
The BJP MLA further alleged that the Congress's "so-called dual policy" towards the song is not a new development.
He pointed to the party's decision in 1937 to truncate "Vande Mataram" after objections raised by Mohammad Ali Jinnah, suggesting that the "shadow of that "compromise" is visible again in the current conduct.
Chatterjee also contrasted the national leadership's alleged discomfort with the fact that the Congress's own West Bengal student wing, Chhatra Parishad, uses the slogan "Mantra moder sanjeevan, Vande Mataram." He emphasized that "Vande Mataram" is not the exclusive property of any political party but is a sacred part of India's collective memory and Bankim Chandra's enduring legacy, a national symbol earned through immense sacrifices.
