- BJP's CR Kesavan accused ex-PM Jawaharlal Nehru of altering Vande Mataram lyrics by removing stanzas on Durga
- Kesavan shared a letter Nehru wrote to Netaji Subhas Bose in 1937 which said the song could 'irritate Muslims'
- PM Modi will lead a mass recital of the "full version of our glorious 'Vande Mataram'", he said.
BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan on Friday accused the ex-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the Congress of "brazenly pandering to a communal agenda" by altering the lyrics - specifically by removing references to the goddess Durga - to the national song, 'Vande Mataram'.
But Prime Minister Narendra Modi will today, on the 150th anniversary of its creation, participate in a mass recital of the "full version of our glorious 'Vande Mataram' across the nation", he said.
Before that recital, the Prime Minister slammed the Congress, saying, "In 1937, a portion of 'Vande Mataram' was severed... it was torn apart. The division sowed the seeds of the nation's division. It is important for today's generation to understand why... Divisive thinking remains a challenge today."
In his X post Kesavan criticised Nehru and shared letters to Netaji Subhas Bose in September and October 1937. In the latter he said the "background of 'Vande Mataram' is likely to irritate the Muslims".
The reference was to controversy over sections of the song that praise the Hindu goddess Durga.
"Nehru spitefully writes that anybody considering the words in Vande Mataram as anything to do with a goddess was absurd," Kesavan declared, although the referred section in the September letter suggests Nehru meant such an interpretation of the lyrics is absurd, and not the person.
"He also derisively opines that Vande Mataram is not suitable as a national song," Kesavan declared, referring to the section in which Nehru says (with no apparent derision) "… I also think the song is not suitable as a national anthem (because) it contains too many difficult words".
The lyrics, Nehru also wrote, are "out of keeping with modern notions of nationalism".
"He (Nehru) went on to say 'there does seem some substance in it', i.e., regarding outcry against Vande Mataram, and that 'people who are communistically inclined have been affected by it'."
In that letter, written in October, though, Nehru also wrote, "Whatever we do cannot be to pander to communalists' feelings but to meet real grievances where they exist."
The jabs over the goddess Durga come amid a rancorous build-up to next year's Bengal election.
Congress responds
The opposition party's reply was to claim the BJP and its ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, for "avoiding" singing the song during its meetings and rallies.
Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge declared the RSS prefers to sing 'Namaste Sada Vatasale', a musical prayer rather than India's national song. "It is deeply ironic that those who today claim to be the self-proclaimed guardians of nationalism - RSS and BJP, have never sung 'Vande Mataram'..."
From Nehru to Rahul Gandhi
Kesavan then took aim at Rahul Gandhi and his "malicious" remark from March 2024, when he said, "There is a word 'shakti' (might) in Hindi. We are fighting against a 'shakti' (might of the state)." The comment was made in a speech on alleged voter fraud by the BJP during the Maharashtra election.
Gandhi was then seen as referring to opposition claims the BJP uses central agencies, like the CBI, ED and Income Tax Department, to target and intimidate rivals, particularly before an election.
The PM and the BJP had then accused Gandhi and the opposition, including the Congress-led INDIA bloc, of wanting to destroy 'shakti', and extended the comment to "...denying the existence of Lord Ram". "I accept their challenge. I will sacrifice my life," the Prime Minister said in Telangana's Jagtial.
READ | "Always Trying To Change My Words...": Rahul Gandhi On PM's 'Shakti' Jab
Gandhi hit back by accusing the PM of "always trying to change the meaning of my words..."
Circling back to that incident and remarks this week - that the PM had manufactured 'drama' on Chhath Puja for the Bihar election - Kesavan wrote, "The Hindu virodhi mentality of Nehru finds a pungent echo in Rahul Gandhi who maligned the sacred Chhath as 'drama', hurting the sentiments of crores..."
With input from agencies
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