Delhi/Hyderabad, August 20: BJP president Nitin Nabin on Thursday criticised the Congress over its decision to sing only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram at party events, accusing it of pursuing vote-bank politics.
Nabin said the Congress Working Committee’s decision amounted to an insult to the National Song and those who sacrificed their lives for the country.
Nitin Nabin Targets Congress Over Vande Mataram Decision
The BJP chief reacted after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) decided to follow a 1937 resolution on Vande Mataram. Under the decision, only the first two stanzas of the National Song will be sung at Congress events.
In a post on X, Nabin said the Congress had now “formalised its insult” to Vande Mataram through an organisational resolution.
He alleged that the opposition party had prioritised electoral considerations over national sentiment.
“The Congress has now become the new Muslim League today,” Nabin said in his post.
कांग्रेस ने अब अपने अपमान को एक प्रस्ताव की शक्ल दे दी है। उसकी कार्यसमिति ने तय किया है कि कांग्रेस के मंचों पर ‘वंदे मातरम्’ के केवल पहले दो छंद ही गाए जाएंगे।
जब कुछ दिन पूर्व यही अपमान एक व्यक्ति के आचरण में उजागर हुआ था, तब कांग्रेस ने उसे संयोग बताकर टाल दिया था। आज वही…
— Nitin Nabin (@NitinNabin) August 19, 2026
The BJP president further claimed that the decision was disrespectful to the martyrs who had kept Vande Mataram as a symbol of the freedom struggle.
Nabin also referred to a controversy surrounding the singing of the full version of Vande Mataram during an Independence Day programme at the Congress office on August 15.
He said the alleged disrespect shown to the National Song during the event had been dismissed by the Congress as a coincidence.
According to Nabin, the latest CWC resolution had now turned what he described as an “individual’s conduct” into an official party position.
The BJP leader accused the Congress of compromising national sentiment for electoral gains.
The CWC’s decision has triggered a fresh political debate between the BJP and Congress over the National Song and its historical interpretation.
While the Congress has cited its 1937 resolution as the basis for singing only the first two stanzas at party programmes, the BJP has criticised the move as an attempt to appease a particular section of voters.
Nabin alleged that the Congress had repeatedly compromised the country’s “self-respect” for vote-bank politics.
The controversy comes amid renewed political focus on Vande Mataram and its role in India’s freedom movement, with both parties sharply differing over the issue.
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