The BJP has escalated its attack on the Congress over the rendition of Vande Mataram, announcing a nationwide campaign after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) reaffirmed that only the first two stanzas of the National Song would be sung at party events.
The decision was taken at the first meeting of the BJP’s newly appointed national office-bearers, where the party adopted a resolution condemning the Congress’s August 19 decision to retain its 1937 position on the issue.
Sharing the resolution, BJP national president Nitin Nabin said the party would launch an awareness drive across the country, particularly targeting youth, to highlight the history, meaning and national significance of all six stanzas of Vande Mataram and its role in India’s freedom movement.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party strongly condemns and unequivocally opposes the decision of the Congress Working Committee… to limit the singing of ‘Vande Mataram’ to only its first two stanzas,” the resolution stated.
The BJP argued that the Congress was placing a political compromise from 1937 above constitutional and parliamentary developments after Independence, citing the Constituent Assembly’s 1950 position and Parliament’s 2026 legislation recognising the National Song.
The controversy follows the CWC’s decision to continue its long-standing practice of singing only the first two stanzas at party programmes. Congress leader KC Venugopal defended the stand, saying it reflected the position endorsed by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
Calling Vande Mataram a symbol of India’s freedom struggle, the BJP said the issue went beyond party politics and concerned the nation’s honour and historical legacy.