Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Congress under Jawaharlal Nehru’s presidency betrayed Vande Mataram, compromising its spirit under the Muslim League’s pressure and “the party’s same appeasement policy later had it accept India’s Partition too”.

Opening the special discussion on “the 150th anniversary of the national song” in the Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister spoke of Mahatma Gandhi’s high deference to Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s composition and of Nehru disregarding that to associate with Muslim League leader MA Jinnah’s opposition to Vande Mataram.

Quoting Gandhi’s high praise for the song, Modi asked why Vande Mataram was betrayed. The PM’s reference was to the October 29, 1937, Congress Working Committee resolution adopting the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram as the

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