Cong leaders Harak Singh and Harish Rawat target BJP over Vande Mataram

Dehradun, 24 Aug: The political battle between the Congress and the BJP over Vande Mataram has intensified with Congress leaders Harak Singh Rawat and Harish Rawat launching sharp attacks on the BJP. Harak Singh, chairman of the Uttarakhand Congress election management committee, claimed that the Congress is a party that follows the Constitution framed by Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and will not sing the full Vande Mataram merely at the BJP’s insistence. He asked why should Congress act like BJP’s subordinates, doing whatever the party dictates. He asserted that Congress will take decisions strictly in accordance with the Constitution and reminded that the Congress Working Committee has officially resolved to sing only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram at its programmes.

Harak Singh Rawat challenged the BJP to declare openly that it does not accept Ambedkar’s Constitution, does not recognise Jana Gana Mana and Vande Mataram, and does not believe India is a secular nation. He claimed that the Congress leaders are more devout and rooted in Sanatan tradition than the BJP members, yet they respect other faiths equally. Rawat added that while some perceive him as quarrelsome, he cannot even harm a mosquito, and claimed he can easily defeat BJP leaders in religious discourse. It may be recalled that he is known for his outspoken style, and Harak Singh has repeatedly attacked the BJP, recently describing its ministers as juniors who were once his protégés.

At the same time, Harish Rawat, also has accused the BJP of politicising Vande Mataram and said the party has no historical association with the song, alleging that it has only committed a form of political appropriation. He recalled that Vande Mataram was the song of India’s freedom struggle and in 1937, under Mahatma Gandhi’s guidance, the Congress Working Committee formed a sub-committee including Subhas Chandra Bose, Acharya Narendra Dev, Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Azad and others to deliberate on its use. Rawat stressed that Congress cannot deviate from the values and principles of the independence movement and that today’s committee cannot go beyond the decisions taken by the freedom fighters of that era.