6 months ago
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Veteran Congress person Ashok Gehlot connected Friday (November 7, 2025) accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led authorities astatine the Centre of attempting to weaken the bequest of the independency question by utilizing the 150th day of the nationalist song, Vande Mataram. Mr. Gehlot said the events organised to people the juncture had been “politicised”.
“There is an effort to hide the glorious contented of sacrifice, penance, and devotion associated with our freedom,” Mr. Gehlot said, portion alleging that the BJP and its ideological fountainhead, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), wanted to extremity the legacy. The RSS had “no connection” with the state movement, helium added.
Mr. Gehlot — the erstwhile Rajasthan Chief Minister — said astatine a property league successful Jaipur that though the BJP had got the accidental to travel to powerfulness “in the sanction of religion”, that did not mean they should effort to erase the bequest of Congress.
“During British rule, they [the RSS] were successful collaboration with them; they did not hoist the tricolour for decades, did not judge the Constitution, and adjacent burnt effigies of Mahatma Gandhi and B.R. Ambedkar. Sardar Patel himself had banned the RSS, and present they are trying to assertion Sardar Patel arsenic their own,” Mr. Gehlot said.
Mr. Gehlot affirmed that the Congress’s bequest was the aforesaid arsenic that of India’s independency movement, thing they were arrogant of, and said nary 1 had the close to erase this bequest and marque aboriginal generations retrieve lone the RSS oregon BJP successful history. “We volition not judge this,” helium said.
“The RSS and BJP are surviving successful guilt… They person ne'er believed successful the Constitution. Vande Mataram became an inspirational opus for state fighters successful 1896, and it was archetypal sung by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore astatine the Calcutta session. Since then, this opus has been sung regularly astatine each Congress artifact committee, territory committee, oregon session,” Mr. Gehlot said.
Referring to the RSS song, Namaste Sada Vatsale, the Congress person said: “Your opus is Namaste Sada Vatsale; archer me, person you ever sung Vande Mataram astatine immoderate RSS shakha? Have you ever adjacent discussed Vande Mataram?”
Mr. Gehlot appreciated the determination to observe the day of Vande Matraram, but said it should person been organised successful specified a mode that the full federation could enactment successful it. “Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Parsis, and Jains, everyone should beryllium included. The authorities programmes should not beryllium turned into BJP’s events but should beryllium inclusive of all,” helium said.
The BJP reacted sharply to Mr. Gehlot’s remarks, saying helium was “distorting history” and dragging the nationalist opus into the realm of politics. BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP and erstwhile Minister Ghanshyam Tiwari said the Muslim leaders had opposed Vande Mataram astatine the Congress session, aft which it was sought to beryllium linked with religion, which was “completely incorrect and unfortunate”.
Mr. Tiwari said the BJP considered the nationalist opus a awesome of nationalist unity and inspiration, alternatively than a governmental tool. “The BJP is simply a enactment with the nationalist ideology… If Mr. Gehlot and Congress genuinely felt patriotic, they should person participated successful this lawsuit and stood with the country, alternatively than distancing themselves [from it],” Mr. Tiwari said.
