Division of Vande Mataram song led to partition of India: Amit Shah

New Delhi, Dec 9: Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah Tuesday initiated a special discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the 150th anniversary of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the need to discuss Vande Mataram and to remain devoted to it was present when it was first composed, remained throughout the freedom struggle, continues today, and will still be there in 2047 when India emerges as a truly Great Nation. Vande Mataram is an immortal creation that awakens the feelings of dedication, devotion and duty towards Mother India. He said that some people are trying to belittle the glorification of Vande Mataram by linking it to the upcoming elections in West Bengal.
Shah said that Vande Mataram was never limited only to West Bengal or India; wherever in the world there were lovers of freedom, they used to sing Vande Mataram even in their secret meetings. The Home Minister said that even today, when a soldier on the border or a police jawan for internal security makes the supreme sacrifice, the mantra on his lips is Vande Mataram.
Amit Shah said that the song Vande Mataram became the proclamation of freedom, the inspiration for the freedom struggle, and the force that liberated Mother India from the chains of slavery. It is Vande Mataram that inspires India’s martyrs, even as they make the ultimate sacrifice, to be reborn and offer their lives again for Mother India in the next birth. He said that many great thinkers and sages drew inspiration from Vande Mataram to keep our ancient nation progressing on the path of its eternal culture for centuries.
Shah said that the discussion, glorification, and celebration of Vande Mataram taking place in both Houses of Parliament will help our children, adolescents, youth, and many generations to come understand its profound significance and lay the foundation for the rebirth and reconstruction of the nation.
Amit Shah said that during the period of slavery, many of our temples, universities, centres of art, agriculture and education systems were destroyed, yet no one could erase the essence of our culture from the soul of the people. At that very moment, there was a need to awaken and reorganise that very spirit, and it was precisely then that Bankim Babu composed Vande Mataram. Neither the British nor those who had accepted their civilisation could stop it.
He said that Vande Mataram awakened a nation that had forgotten its own divine power. Vande Mataram performed the task of reviving the soul of the nation. Maharshi Aurobindo had said that Vande Mataram is the mantra of India’s rebirth, and this statement truly reflects the greatness of Vande Mataram. Shah added that Sri Aurobindo’s deep sentiment towards Vande Mataram became a source of inspiration for every child of this country and turned into the mantra of our freedom.
The Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that our country is unique in the entire world; India is the only nation whose borders have been defined by its culture, and it is this very culture that has held India together. It was Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay who awakened the idea of cultural nationalism during the era of colonial subjugation. He said that the mantra that binds our country is our culture, and it was the clarion call of Vande Mataram that, for the first time, firmly established the principle of cultural nationalism.
Shah said that today the entire country is embracing and marching forward with the vision of cultural nationalism.
The Home Minister said that India is not merely a piece of land; it is the embodiment of our Mother, and we sing devotional hymns to her. Vande Mataram is precisely that expression of devotion. In the composition of Vande Mataram, the concept of Bharat Mata has been described with profound emotion: She is portrayed as the bestower of water, fruits, and prosperity; adorned with flowers, delighting the heart and mind; and as the very form of Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Durga.
Amit Shah said that the tendency to avoid discussing Vande Mataram is not new. In 1925, on the golden jubilee of Vande Mataram, if the leader of the then main political party had not split ‘Vande Mataram’ and started appeasement, the partition of the country would not have occurred. He said that at its 50th milestone, Vande Mataram was limited, and from there the politics of appeasement began, which later resulted in the partition of the country.
Shah said that if Vande Mataram had not been divided into two parts under the policy of appeasement, the country would not have been partitioned. He said that during the 100th year of Vande Mataram, all those who spoke Vande Mataram were imprisoned by the then Prime Minister. He said that during that period, the Emergency was imposed in the country, and lakhs of opposition members, social workers, and members of voluntary organizations were jailed. Union Home Minister said that during the Emergency, newspaper offices were locked without any reason. Even Kishore Kumar’s voice was not allowed to be broadcast on All India Radio, and duet songs were played only in Lata Ji’s voice. When Vande Mataram completed 100 years, the entire country was practically held captive
Shah said that the opposition party, whose sessions used to begin with Gurudev Tagore singing Vande Mataram, when the same Vande Mataram was discussed in Lok Sabha, the members of the prominent family associated with that party were absent. He added that the disrespect and insult toward Vande Mataram have run in the veins of the leadership of the principal opposition party ever since the freedom struggle and continues even today.
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that a leader of the main opposition party stated in the Lok Sabha that there is no need to discuss Vande Mataram today. The song that Mahatma Gandhi described as being connected to the purest soul of the nation, and that Bipin Chandra Pal called the integrated expression of national devotion and duty in Rashtradharma, was also divided by the opposition party itself. He said that Vande Mataram also played a role at the international level in energizing our freedom movement
Shah said that during the period of colonial rule, even at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, our hockey team sang Vande Mataram with deep emotion, and we won the gold medal.
Union Home Minister said that the very foundation of their party was laid on the principle of cultural nationalism. He said that their party was formed so that the country would not run on the basis of Western culture, but instead on its own original culture and core ideas.
Amit Shah said that it is in the records that the singing of Vande Mataram was stopped in this Parliament. He said that in 1992, MP Ram Naik raised the issue through a short-duration discussion, demanding that Vande Mataram be sung again in Parliament. At that time, Lal Krishna Advani, who was the Leader of the Opposition, strongly told the Speaker of the Lok Sabha that Vande Mataram should be sung in this great House, because it had been accepted by the Constituent Assembly. It was only then that, with unanimous agreement, the Lok Sabha resumed the singing of Vande Mataram in 1992.
The Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that when they initiated the singing of Vande Mataram, many members of the opposition alliance had said at that time as well that they would not sing Vande Mataram. Union Home Minister said he has observed that, before the singing of Vande Mataram begins, some members seated in the House stand up and walk out as soon as the song starts. Shah added that there is not a single member of their party who does not stand during the singing of Vande Mataram.
Shah said that in the 75 years since independence, every government that has come to power has taken the country far ahead. He said that we have greatly strengthened our democracy, and today the roots of our democracy have become extremely strong. Shri Shah said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has named the period from the 75th to the 100th year of independence as the ‘Amrit Kaal’. The Prime Minister has placed a resolve before the youth of the country: that we will treat this period from the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ to the centenary of independence as a phase of challenges. When the centenary of independence is celebrated, our country will stand first in the world in every field. He emphasised that this is not merely the resolve of PM Modi or any particular political party. Some people may dismiss it as just a political slogan, but it is in fact the collective resolve of 140 crore Indians, and it will certainly be fulfilled. Home Minister further said that it is nothing short of divine coincidence that the 150th year of Vande Mataram has arrived precisely when we are observing the Amrit Kaal. Through this milestone, we will once again kindle the flame of patriotism across the nation.
Amit Shah said that Vande Mataram will never become irrelevant. The need that existed for it when it was composed is just as great today. He said that at that time, Vande Mataram became the driving force to liberate the country, whereas in this Amrit Kaal, Vande Mataram will become the rallying cry to make India developed and great.
Union Home Minister said that it is the shared responsibility of every member of this House to once again awaken the spirit of Vande Mataram in the heart of every child, to firmly instill the chant of Vande Mataram in the mind of every adolescent, and to inspire every youth to dedicate their life to the path illuminated by the true meaning of Vande Mataram. He said that the clarion call of Vande Mataram should become the driving force behind the creation of the India that our freedom fighters had dreamed of. (PIB)