A political row erupted in Srinagar after the full version of Vande Mataram was sung at the Jammu and Kashmir International Film Festival. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and National Conference president Farooq Abdullah were present at the event.
The Congress objected to the singing of the complete version, with party General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal sharing a video of the event on X and appealing to its alliance partner, the National Conference, to support the Congress’s position.
National Conference: Congress cannot decide how much to sing
National Conference leader Bashir Ahmad rejected the Congress’s appeal, saying that an alliance partner cannot decide whether Vande Mataram should be sung or how many stanzas should be performed.
Ahmad said Venugopal has the right to express his views on social media but cannot impose his decision on others. He described the issue as a matter of people’s choice and said his party does not believe in imposing such decisions.
Congress wants only two stanzas
Venugopal argued that the version of Vande Mataram adopted at the time should be followed. He said the decision was made deliberately to prevent the national song from being given a communal interpretation.
The Congress Working Committee had last month decided to follow a 1937 party resolution, under which only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram would be sung at Congress programmes.
The decision came after the BJP repeatedly accused Congress leaders of disrespecting the national song by not singing its complete version.
BJP attacks Congress
BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi targeted the Congress over its objection to the full version, claiming that the party had become the “new Muslim League of the 21st century.”
The remark has added a political dimension to the dispute between the two alliance partners.
Centre’s Vande Mataram directive
The controversy comes amid the Centre’s decision earlier this year to make the playing of all six stanzas of Vande Mataram mandatory before the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, at government programmes, schools and official ceremonies.
The latest dispute in Srinagar has once again brought the national song and its performance rules into the political spotlight.
