The Congress on Sunday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Vande Mataram row claiming he has “insulted” the Congress Working Committee of 1937, which issued a statement on the song, as also Rabindranath Tagore, and said he should fight his political battles on current issues of daily concern.
Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, said that the prime minister insulted the CWC and Tagore is shocking but not surprising “since the RSS had played no role in our Freedom Movement led by Mahatma Gandhi”. The Opposition party’s attack came after the prime minister had said on Friday that important stanzas of the national song, “Vande Mataram”, were dropped in 1937, which sowed the seeds of the partition, and asserted that such a “divisive mindset” is still a challenge for the country. Modi had made the comments after inaugurating the year-long commemoration of “Vande Mataram” to mark 150 years of the national song. Modi also released a commemorative stamp and coin on the occasion.
In a social media post, Ramesh said, “The Congress Working Committee met in Kolkata, October 26-November 1, 1937. Those present included Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Sarojini Naidu, J.B. Kripalani, Bhulabhai Desai, Jamnalal Bajaj, Narendra Deva, and others.”
The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi Volume 66, page 46, reveals that on October 28, 1937, the CWC issued a statement on Vande Mataram, and this statement had been profoundly influenced by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore and his advice, he said. “The Prime Minister has insulted this CWC as also Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. That he should have done so is shocking but not surprising since the RSS had played no role in our Freedom Movement led by Mahatma Gandhi,” Ramesh said.
The prime minister should fight his current political battles on current issues that are of daily concern to crores of Indians who worry about their present and future, he said.
