2 weeks ago

BJP chief Nitin Nabin accuses Congress of Vande Mataram disrespect

BJP chief Nitin Nabin accuses Congress of Vande Mataram disrespect
‘Dirty appeasement politics’: Nitin Nabin accuses Cong of showing disrespect to Vande Mataram · theprint.in

India has a special song called Vande Mataram that many people love, because freedom fighters sang it long ago when India became independent.

On Independence Day, a big political party called the Congress had a celebration at its office.

The leader of the BJP, Nitin Nabin, said that during the celebration a senior Congress leader named Sonia Gandhi asked for the song to be stopped.

He said this was very disrespectful to the song and to the country.

He also said the Congress government in Kerala did not include the song at all in its Independence Day event.

The BJP asked the Congress leaders to say sorry for what happened.

But the Congress said the whole story is not true.

They said Sonia Gandhi was not stopping the song; she was just asking for a chair for another leader, Mallikarjun Kharge, because he had been standing for a while.

So the two parties disagree about what really happened at the celebration.

Key facts

Accuser
BJP president Nitin Nabin
Accused
Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge
Allegation
Disrespect to Vande Mataram at Congress headquarters' Independence Day event
Congress response
Denied the charge; Sonia Gandhi was asking for a chair for Mallikarjun Kharge, not stopping the song
Date of incident
Saturday's Independence Day event; statements made Sunday, August 16
Location
New Delhi, Congress headquarters
Related allegation
Congress government in Kerala removed Vande Mataram from its Independence Day celebrations
BJP demand
An apology from the Congress leaders

Quotes

Nitin Nabin

BJP president and national chief of the party

“He also said that the people of the country have ‘well understood’ how much the Congress is connected to ‘Indianness’, given that it becomes ‘uncomfortable’ with the singing of Vande Mataram.”
theprint.in
“When the national song was being sung at the Congress headquarters, Sonia Gandhi signalled to stop it.”
theprint.in

Sources

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