Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday alleged that Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson Sonia Gandhi objected to the singing of complete version of 'Vande Mataram' at party's headquarters in New Delhi on August 15, saying the incident shows the 'shamelessness' of the grand old party.
Speaking at a rally in Rajasthan's Chittorgarh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said Sonia and the Congress have insulted the national song on Independence Day, and they should apologise to the entire country. He said the Congress forgot about 'Vande Mataram' because of its greed for votes.
"Look at their (Congress') shamelessness. The anthem Vande Mataram was being sung at the Congress Party headquarters. During the anthem, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi told the Congress President to stop singing," Shah said.
"We all just kept watching on TV... Sonia ji, 140 crore people are watching you. This sin you have committed will never be forgiven by the people of this country. How can anyone even dream of leaving the anthem Vande Mataram incomplete? The people of Congress should feel ashamed," he added.
The row over Sonia's 'chair gesture'
The union home minister's attack comes a day following row over Sonia's 'chair gesture'. According to BJP leaders and a section of social media users, Sonia signalled to stop the complete version of 'Vande Mataram' being sung at the party headquarters in the national capital.
The incident caused a massive row, but the Congress denied the allegations and clarified that the Rajya Sabha member only asked for a chair for party's national president Mallikarjun Kharge who had been standing for a while.
However, the BJP has refused to accept the Congress' clarification and said that Sonia, Kharge and Rahul Gandhi should apologise to the country for the 'utter disrespect' they showed towards the national song.
Amid this, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's direct descendant Sumitro Chatterjee, a BJP MLA from West Bengal's Naihati, has also sought Sonia's unconditional apology, describing the entire incident as "a shameless repetition of a historical mistake". Chattopadhyay had composed 'Vande Mataram' and the Centre has announced that all its six stanzas will be sung at all official government events.
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