New Delhi Independence Day celebrations were held across the country on August 15. A programme was also organised at the Congress headquarters in New Delhi, where Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi were among those present.

A video clip from the programme triggered a political controversy, with BJP leaders alleging that Sonia Gandhi objected to the singing of the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’.

 BJP Targets Sonia Gandhi and Congress Leadership

BJP national general secretary organisation BL Santosh shared a clip from the programme and criticised the Congress leadership. He alleged that Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge appeared uncomfortable with the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’ being sung.

BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal also criticised the Congress and alleged that the incident raised questions about the party's position on the legacy of India's freedom struggle.

BJP leaders questioned the Congress over its alleged objection to the national song and asked how such a position could be consistent with the party's claim of carrying forward the legacy of the freedom movement.

 Congress Rejects the Allegations

The Congress rejected the allegations made by the BJP. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said there was no attempt by Sonia Gandhi to stop the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’ from being sung.

According to the Congress, Sonia Gandhi was only asking for a chair for Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. The party said the video was being interpreted out of context and that the BJP's allegations did not reflect what actually happened during the programme.

 Jairam Ramesh Recalls History of Vande Mataram

Jairam Ramesh also referred to the historical background of ‘Vande Mataram’. He said that during a Congress Working Committee meeting in 1937, several prominent leaders of the freedom movement were present.

According to Ramesh, following advice from Rabindranath Tagore, it was decided that the opening verses of ‘Vande Mataram’ would be sung at Congress sessions.

He said that since then, the opening verses have continued to be sung at various Congress programmes and that there has been no controversy over the tradition.

Ramesh further said that the full version of the national song was sung during the Independence Day programme and there was no reason for any controversy over it.

 Video Clip Triggers Political Exchange

The video clip led to a fresh exchange between the BJP and Congress. While BJP leaders used the incident to question the Congress's position on ‘Vande Mataram’, the Congress rejected the allegations and argued that the episode was being presented without the proper context.

The controversy is now centred on the interpretation of the video clip and the competing claims made by the two political parties regarding what happened during the Independence Day programme.