PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
The Bharatiya Janata Party has strongly condemned the Congress’ stance on Vande Mataram, calling it motivated by divisive politics. The BJP State president and Rajya Sabha member Mahendra Bhatt, referring to the party’s National Executive Committee’s resolution, said that the party is going to launch a public awareness campaign to spread the history, meaning and glorious heritage of the national anthem to the masses. On the concern of former CM and Congress leader Harish Rawat, he suggested that he is a veteran who should inspire his party workers to respect Vande Mataram. He also said that those who cannot sing the full national song at present can at least give it respect as per the law.
Addressing the media at the BJP State headquarters on Monday, he said that the party will not compromise at any cost on the respect to Vande Mataram and the constitutional right to sing it. He strongly condemned the recent decision of the Congress Working Committee to re-accept its divisive resolution of 1937 and to sing only two verses of Vande Mataram. The BJP is going to launch an awareness campaign with the aim of thwarting the opposition’s efforts to make Vande Mataram incomplete and forgotten and to spread the respect, self-respect and historical importance of the national anthem among the people, especially the youth, Bhatt said.
The BJP State president further said that the party strongly opposes the Congress Working Committee’s decision to re-adopt the divisive resolution of 1937 on Vande Mataram. For the BJP, nothing is more important than national pride, patriotism and the integrity of the country. This is why the party concluded its first national office-bearers’ meeting with the full singing of Vande Mataram and reiterated its resolve to protect a “glorious” India, he said.
