New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Monday, described Vande Mataram as a ‘mantra” and ‘slogan’ that energised and guided India’s freedom struggle, and inspired Indians to attain freedom in 1947.
Initiating a special discussion on the 150th anniversary of the national song Vande Mataram in the Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister slammed the Congress for bowing down to the Muslim League’s sentiments against Vande Mataram.
The then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, instead of voicing opinion against Muhammad Ali Jinnah, backed his opposition to the country’s national song, he said.
PM Modi further questioned why injustice was meted out to Vande Mataram when Mahatma Gandhi himself wrote in 1905 that the song has become so popular that it has emerged as national anthem.
“If Vande Mataram was so popular, why was injustice meted out to it, why was it betrayed in the last century,” he asked.
According to him, the milestone marks a historic moment for the country, coming at a time when several major national anniversaries are being observed.
“Vande Mataram is a mantra, a slogan which gave energy, inspiration, and showed the path for sacrifice and penance to the freedom movement,” the Prime Minister said.
“We recently celebrated 75 years of our Constitution. The country is celebrating the 150th birth anniversaries of Sardar Patel and Birsa Munda. We are also celebrating the 350th martyrdom day of Guru Teg Bahadur ji. Now we are celebrating 150 years of Vande Mataram,” he said.
“Vande Mataram was written at a time when British rulers were trying to take their anthem ‘God Save the Queen’ to every household,” PM Modi said, adding that it was a matter of pride for the nation to witness 150 years of the song that shaped India’s collective consciousness during the struggle for independence.
He reflected on the political context during previous anniversaries of the song, saying that both the 50-year and 100-year milestones came during turbulent periods in India’s history.
“When Vande Mataram completed 50 years, India was under British rule. When it completed 100 years, India was in the clutches of Emergency… At that time, patriots were imprisoned. When the song that inspired our freedom movement was completing a century, the country was witnessing a dark phase,” PM Modi said.
“This song inspired us to attain freedom in 1947. Marking 150 years of Vande Mataram is an opportunity to reinstate that pride and reconnect with that glorious chapter,” he said, calling the 150-year celebration an opportunity to ‘reclaim pride’ in India’s past.
