"Stop claiming monopoly over freedom movement": Ravi Shankar Prasad slams Congress over Vande Mataram row

New Delhi [India], August 18 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party MP Ravi Shankar Prasad slammed the Congress party over the alleged "insult" to the national song, questioned the party's mindset and asked it to stop claiming a "monopoly" over India's freedom movement.
Addressing a press conference, the senior BJP leader referred to an incident at the Congress headquarters on Independence Day and a recent event in Goa.
"We felt compelled to address the embarrassing incident that occurred at the Congress headquarters on August 15th. Initially, it appeared as though Sonia ji was protesting against the singing of the full Vande Mataram; later, her intellectually gifted media head claimed that a chair was simply being sought for Kharge-sahab. That was absolute nonsense," Prasad said.
He further alleged that the practice of shortening the national song continued during Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's recent visit to Goa.
"Yesterday, when Kharge sahab visited Goa, only two stanzas were sung at the party event there as well. Today, we wish to question the very mindset of the Congress party," he added.
Launching a scathing attack on the grand old party's historical legacy, Prasad stated that the Congress should cease portraying itself as the sole custodian of the independence struggle if it cannot respect national symbols.
"If the Congress engages in such conduct, it should please stop claiming a monopoly over India's freedom movement. If this is what the Congress party is doing with the great national song Vande Mataram, then you better stop claiming a monopoly as the custodian of the freedom movement," the BJP MP said.
Drawing a historical parallel, Prasad suggested that the Congress's current stance is rooted in the pre-independence era "appeasement."
"In 1936 and 1937, Congress had a pact with the Muslim League. It is likely that the Muslim League had said that you should sing only 2 paragraphs because it hurts our religious sentiments," Prasad claimed.
The controversy stems from video footage from the Congress headquarters showing Kharge and Sonia Gandhi conversing while the national song was being rendered during Independence Day celebrations on August 15, prompting the BJP to accuse the party's top leadership of disrespecting "Vande Mataram" and demand a public apology. (ANI)