New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Wednesday passed a resolution reaffirming the party’s 1937 stand on Vande Mataram, calling for the singing of the song’s first two stanzas at national gatherings, amid the ongoing political controversy over the composition.
The resolution echoes a position first adopted by the CWC in 1937, when it had recommended that only the opening two stanzas of the song be sung at national gatherings, while acknowledging its historic significance in India’s freedom struggle. The move comes days after the central government, during the Monsoon Session of Parliament, brought in a law making it mandatory to sing all six stanzas of Vande Mataram, with provisions for legal penalties in case of non-compliance. Since before Independence, only the first two stanzas of the song have traditionally been sung at public and national events, and the issue had earlier surfaced during a Congress conclave in Goa as well.
The meeting, held at the party’s Indira Bhawan headquarters in New Delhi under Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, also saw discussions on a wide range of issues, including education reforms, student unrest, allegations relating to Ram Temple donations, and reported Chinese incursions along the border.
Addressing the CWC meeting, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi stressed the importance of internal cohesion within the party. “Modi and Amit Shah are finished. Unity in our party is a great strength. Look at how Mamata Banerjee’s party disintegrated. Our unity is our ideology, our strength,” Gandhi told party leaders present at the meeting.
Gandhi also spoke directly to the chief ministers of the four Congress-ruled states, urging greater transparency in the education system amid growing student protests over examination-related issues. “Maintain transparency in the education system. Strengthen the structure. Students should not be harmed. The youth of this country are our strength. The student issue will be raised across the country. The fight for students will be fought on every front, everywhere,” he told the chief ministers.
As part of its outreach strategy, the party is also preparing to expand its “Chhatron Ki Goonj” (Echo of Students) campaign to nearly 800 cities and towns across the country, with Rahul Gandhi expected to participate in several related programmes in the coming weeks. Kharge has additionally directed the chief ministers of Congress-ruled states to prepare detailed reports on reforms needed in the education and examination systems, including measures to prevent paper leaks, and submit their findings within a month.