The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday launched a scathing attack on India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, accusing him of committing a "historic sin" by dropping certain stanzas of Vande Mataram, which hailed Goddess Durga.
Taking to X, BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan stated that under the presidency of Nehru, Congress adopted a truncated Vande Mataram as the party's national song in the 1937 session in Faizpur. Citing a letter by Nehru to Subhash Chandra Bose, Kesavan highlighted that the then Congress President said that Vande Mataram had nothing to do with Goddess Durga, further opining that Vande Mataram is not suitable as a national song.
Kesavan wrote in his post, "It is imperative for our younger generation to know how the Congress party brazenly pandering to its communal agenda under the Presidentship of Nehru, adopted only a truncated Vande Mataram as the party's national song in its 1937 Faizpur Session, while PM Narendra Modi will today inaugurate the 150th year commemoration and participate in the mass recital of the full version of our glorious Vande Mataram across the nation."
— C.R.Kesavan (@crkesavan) November 7, 2025
Adding, "The glorious Vande Mataram became the voice of our nation's unity and solidarity, celebrating our motherland, instilling nationalistic spirit and fostering patriotism. Chanting it was made a criminal offense by the British. It did not belong to any particular religion or language. But, the Congress committed a historic sin and blunder of linking the song with religion. Congress under Nehru, citing religious grounds, deliberately removed stanzas of Vande Mataram, which hailed Goddess Maa Durga."
He further targeted Rahul Gandhi, claiming that the "Hindu Virodhi mentality" of Nehru finds a pungent echo in the Leader of Opposition's remarks on Chatth Puja.
Kesavan said, "In a letter dated September 1, 1937, Nehru spitefully writes that anybody considering the words in Vande Mataram as anything to do with a Goddess was absurd. He also derisively opines that Vande Mataram is not suitable as a national song. Netaji Subhash Bose had strongly advocated for the full original version of Vande Mataram. On October 20, 1937, Nehru wrote to Netaji Subhash Bose claiming that the background of Vande Mataram was likely to irritate Muslims. He went on to say that there does seem to be substance regarding the outcry against Vande Mataram, and people who are communalistically inclined have been affected by it."
He wrote ahead, "In 1937, if Nehru as Congress President, blanked out the mention of Goddess Maa Durga by truncating Vande Mataram, Rahul Gandhi in March 2024 maliciously remarked, 'There is a word called Shakti in Hindu Dharma and we are fighting against Shakti.' The Hindu Virodhi mentality of Nehru finds a pungent echo in Rahul Gandhi, who recently demeaned and maligned the sacred Chhath Puja as a drama, hurting the sentiments of crores of devotees."