No Controversy Over Vande Mataram Rendition; Gestures Were to Request Chair for Kharge: Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi: Congress General Secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, on Saturday dismissed allegations of any political row or attempt to interrupt the rendition of the national song Vande Mataram during the party’s Independence Day flag-hoisting ceremony at its Indira Bhawan headquarters.
Clarifying the sequence of events following claims made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Ramesh affirmed that the full version of the song was sung in its entirety and refuted suggestions of any internal discomfort or disruption during the event.
“The full version of Vande Mataram was sung here at Indira Bhawan today, and there is no controversy in it. There was no attempt to stop it. Since the Congress President was standing for a long time, Sonia ji was asking for a chair to be brought for him,” Ramesh told reporters at the party headquarters.
The Congress leader’s remarks came after video footage circulating online prompted criticism from BJP spokespersons and leaders, who alleged that senior party figures looked uncomfortable during the full performance of the song and attempted to halt the proceedings. Addressing the media, Ramesh explained that the exchange captured on camera between Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and other senior figures was purely administrative, stemming from concern over 83-year-old Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge standing for an extended duration during the ceremony.
Expanding on the historical context, Ramesh noted that following a decision by the Congress Working Committee in October 1937—guided by Rabindranath Tagore—the party traditionally performed the initial stanzas of Vande Mataram during official gatherings. However, for Saturday’s 80th Independence Day event at Indira Bhawan, the entire six-stanza version was played in full before Kharge proceeded to hoist the national flag. The political back-and-forth unfolds against the backdrop of recent legislative developments surrounding the national song, following Parliament’s passage of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which grants statutory protection to Vande Mataram on par with the national anthem.
