PM Modi at the Parliament said first PM Jawaharlal Nehru betrayed Vande Mataram by echoing Muhammad Ali Jinnah's communal concerns and fragmenting the national song. Pics/PTI
The Prime Minister further highlighted how Vande Mataram inspired the nation, energised the freedom struggle and became a symbol of national resolve, which prompted Mahatma Gandhi to liken it to the national anthem
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi slamming PM Modi said that the government wants to divert the country's attention from essential issues concerning the public and asked for the rationale for a debate on the National Song, which people deeply revere
Modi also said Muslim League leader Muhammad Ali Jinnah first stepped up his opposition to Vande Mataram on October 15, 1937, from Lucknow
Modi said it was ironic that Bankim Chandra's Vande Mataram underwent a review of its worth in his home state of Bengal at the Kolkata session of the Congress Working Committee in 1937, leaving the country in a state of shock and prompting patriots to take out processions against the decision of the Congress
Participating in the debate on the '150th anniversary of the national song Vande Mataram', Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also hit out at the Congress, claiming that the politics of appeasement led to the division of India
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