BJP accuses Congress of disrespecting Vande Mataram in Goa

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) recently accused the Congress party of disrespecting the national song Vande Mataram in Goa, following an incident at the party's Delhi headquarters on Independence Day. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge defended his actions, stating that he sang the same version of the song that was sung by national leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Ravi Shankar Prasad, a BJP MP and former Union Minister, responded to the accusation by alleging that the Congress had "compromised national symbols and the core values of its own freedom movement." Prasad questioned why only two stanzas of the song were sung during a Goa program and accused the Congress of abandoning its traditions for "vote-bank politics."

He cited the Congress's positions on issues like triple talaq and the Shah Bano verdict and questioned Kharge's repeated references to the Constitution. Prasad also referred to the original Constitution, which included the names of various Indian figures like Lord Ram, Lord Krishna, and Akbar, and criticized Kharge for ignoring these references.

The BJP leader also commented on the issue of "dimagi Naxals," stating that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not named anyone but warned against those who support Maoism. He claimed that the Narendra Modi-led government had eliminated Maoism in certain areas, such as Bastar and Sukma. Prasad emphasized that democracy allows for criticism, but that the basic principle of Naxalism is that power comes from the barrel of a gun.