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Congress names Gaurav Gogoi, Priyanka Gandhi and six other MPs for Vande Mataram debate

NEW DELHI: As Parliament prepares for a high-voltage debate on the 150th year of the national song Vande Mataram on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will initiate the discussion in the Lok Sabha, while Congress deputy leader Gaurav Gogoi is expected to open the debate from the Opposition benches. The Prime Minister will begin the debate at 12 pm, outlining the NDA governments position. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is also expected to address the House later in the session. Other speakers from the Congress include party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Hooda, Manipur MP Dr. Bimol Akoijam, Praniti Shinde, Prashant Padole, Chamala Reddy, and Korba MP Jyotsana Mahant. The BJP has been allotted three hours for its interventions in the Lok Sabha, while a total of ten hours has been set aside for the entire debate. The Rajya Sabha will take up the discussion on Vande Mataram on Tuesday, where the Home Minister will lead the proceedings. The decision to hold a debate on Vande Mataram and on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls followed several rounds of negotiations between the government and the Opposition. The Lok Sabha will discuss the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls in nine states and three Union Territories on December 9 and 10. The debate on Vande Mataram is expected to be contentious, with the Congress and the BJP already at odds over the ruling partys allegation that key stanzas of the national song were dropped in 1937, allegedly sowing the seeds of Partition. While inaugurating the year-long commemoration of Vande Mataram to mark 150 years of the song, PM Modi had said that a divisive mindset remains a challenge for the country. The Congress, however, maintains that the Prime Minister has insulted Vande Mataram , pointing out that Rabindranath Tagore himself recommended adopting only the first two stanzas. The party has termed it shameful for the Prime Minister to accuse the Nobel laureate of harbouring a divisive ideology. Countering the allegations, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh shared extracts from Sabyasachi Bhattacharyas definitive biography of Vande Mataram , detailing the background of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) resolution adopted on October 29, 1937. Three days before the meeting, on October 26, 1937, Tagore wrote to (Jawaharlal) Nehru on this issue. It was the Gurudev himself, with his own special relationship to Vande Mataram, who suggested that the first two stanzas of the song be adopted. His letter, in fact, profoundly influenced the resolution in its entirety, Ramesh said. According to various accounts, a truncated version of Vande Mataram, retaining only the first two of the original six stanzas, was chosen as the national song in 1937 after a panel recommended its adoption. Excerpts from the book, shared by Ramesh on X, state: Upon being consulted, Rabindranath Tagores advice was threefold. While the first two stanzas were entirely acceptable to Rabindranath, he could not sympathise with the sentiments in the latter stanzas.