Watch: Vande Mataram debate has no link to Bengal polls, says Amit Shah

VAnde Mataram may feature been composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in Bengal but it transcended borders and became the intone for republic of india’s freedom battle, unification home minister Amit Shah said on Tuesday as he attacked the Opposition for linking the debate on 150 years of the national song with the upcoming West Bengal elections.Initiating a special debate on the 150 years of Vande Mataram in the Rajya Sabha, Shah attacked the Opposition Congress, saying that when Vande Mataram turned 50, it was reduced to two stanzas, which paved the way for appeasement politics and subsequently the country’s Partition.“Many people like me believe that if Congress had not divided Vande Mataram under its policy of appeasement, the country would not have been divided, and today the country would be whole,” he said.Shah alleged that he had observed some Opposition lawmakers showing disrespect by opting to walk out of the House to avoid participating in the national song discussion, eliciting a sharp response from the Opposition that demanded authentication of his claim. The minister said he would furnish the names, which should be made part of the House records.Shah lashed out at the Opposition, particularly the Congress, for insinuating that the discussion was a means of deflecting attention from issues and initiated with an eye on the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal next year.He said when Vande Mataram completed 50 years, Jawaharlal Nehru split it into two parts and when it turned 100, Emergency was imposed by the then Indira Gandhi-led Congress government. “There was no scope for the glorification of the national song. Indira Gandhi imprisoned those who raised the slogan of Vande Mataram... When discussions were held in the Lok Sabha yesterday (Monday), both members of the Gandhi family were absent from the House. Right from Jawaharlal Nehru to the current leadership, Congress continues to oppose Vande Mataram,” he added.Without naming Congress lawmaker Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who spoke during the discussion in the Lok Sabha a day ago, the home minister said: “Some members raised questions in the Lok Sabha on the need for these discussions on Vande Mataram. The need for discussion on Vande Mataram, the need for dedication towards Vande Mataram, was important then; it is needed now, and it will always be significant even in 2047.”Distancing the discussion from electoral politics — both the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Congress have alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is aiming to use the national song to get a toehold in West Bengal — Shah said, “They think the discussions are being held because of the upcoming elections in Bengal. They want to demean the glorification of our national song by limiting the discussion to the Bengal election. It is true that the composer of Vande Mataram, Bankim Babu, was from Bengal, and the Anand Math had its origin in Bengal, but Vande Mataram was not limited to Bengal or the country…”During the freedom struggle, he said, it found its way into secret meetings of freedom seekers who were abroad and today when soldiers or police personnel make the ultimate sacrifice, they go with Vande Mataram on their lips.Recalling the sentiment that was prevalent when it was composed, Shah said the writer captured India’s ancient civilisation, cultural nationalism and the tradition of envisioning the nation as the mother in the song. “...The idea of worshipping the nation as a mother, which has long been part of our heritage, was fully expressed in his writing,” he said.Earlier, Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan said Vande Mataram was composed at a time when “our motherland” was under colonial rule. “This timeless composition soon became the collective heartbeat of millions yearning to breathe free...For countless freedom fighters, Vande Mataram was not merely a song, it was the final chant from their hearts as they walked fearlessly towards the gallows, their souls illuminated with the dream of an independent Bharat where every citizen could live with dignity and pride. Their sacrifices still resonate in every soaring note of this sacred song, reminding us that freedom was earned not by chance but by unshakeable resolve and boundless love for the nation,” he added.BOXUnion home minister Amit Shah submitted a letter to the Rajya Sabha chairman CP Radhakrishnan listing instances of “unacceptable conduct” toward the Vande Mataram allegedly by Opposition lawmakers.The list includes nine incidents from 2018 to 2025 involving members from various political parties, including the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP), National Conference (JKNC), and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). These incidents record the MPs alleged refusal to sing or stand for Vande Mataram, citing religious concerns.In December 2025, both Imran Masood (Congress MP) and Agha Syed Mehdi (National Conference) refused to sing the song citing religious beliefs, said Shah.According to his reply, in 2019, SP’s Shafiqur Rahman Barq stated he would not sing Vande Mataram’ during his Lok Sabha oath and his grandson, Ziaurrahman Barq (SP), supported this stance in 2025. The list also included Congress MLA Arif Masood’s alleged refusal to sing the Vande Matram in 2019 and an incident from 2018 when at a Congress rally, the song was allegedly cut short.It alleged Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah asked party workers not to sing ‘Vande Mataram’ at a Constitution Day event in 2022 and included the SP’s alleged demand to cancel an order making the song mandatory in schools, and RJD lawmaker Saud Alam’s alleged refusal to stand for the song in the assembly in 2025.ANY RESPONSE