# Kumaraswamy attacks Sonia Gandhi over Vande Mataram, Congress hits back 2026-08-18T08:43:09+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy has triggered a political row by questioning Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's patriotism over the national song Vande Mataram, referring to her Italian origin. Kumaraswamy told reporters in Hassan that "the blood flowing in her is Italian" and asked what she had sacrificed, though he acknowledged her husband Rajiv Gandhi's sacrifice. The controversy began after a video from Congress's Independence Day event showed Sonia Gandhi appearing to stop the singing of Vande Mataram midway. The BJP, including Home Minister Amit Shah, accused the Congress of disrespecting the national song. However, the Congress maintains that Sonia Gandhi was only trying to ensure the correct arrangements for Vande Mataram were sung properly. Karnataka minister Rizwan Arshad hit back at Kumaraswamy, calling him a "frustrated man" and asserting that Sonia Gandhi is "more Indian than many Indians." Kumaraswamy has since repeated his remarks, insisting she is Italian and opposing Indian sentiments. ## Coverage - ndtv.com - livemint.com This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above. Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources. Last updated 2026-08-18T08:55:58+00:00. Tags: BJP, Congress, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Sonia Gandhi, Vande Mataram Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/bjp-mp-attacks-sonia-gandhi-over-vande-mataram-congress-hits-back/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/bjp-mp-attacks-sonia-gandhi-over-vande-mataram-congress-hits-back/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/