Now Reading: Kumaraswamy hits Sonia Gandhi with Italian blood jibe, Congress hits back
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Kumaraswamy hits Sonia Gandhi with Italian blood jibe, Congress hits back
Kumaraswamy hits Sonia Gandhi with Italian blood jibe, Congress hits back
Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Tuesday questioned Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi's allegiance to India, saying 'Italian blood flows in her veins'. Speaking amid a row over Vande Mataram, Kumaraswamy said Gandhi is not originally from India and opposes Indian sentiment. He was responding to an incident at the Congress headquarters on August 15, where BJP leaders accused Gandhi of gesturing to stop the full version of Vande Mataram from being played. Times Now reports Kumaraswamy also questioned what sacrifice Gandhi had made for the country, contrasting her with her husband Rajiv Gandhi. Hindustan Times adds that Kumaraswamy recalled how Sharad Pawar had quit the Congress over Gandhi's foreign origin.
The Congress hit back sharply. Karnataka minister and Congress leader Rizwan Arshad called Kumaraswamy a 'frustrated man', asserting that Sonia Gandhi is 'more Indian than many Indians'. He pointed to the sacrifices of her husband Rajiv Gandhi and mother-in-law Indira Gandhi. The Congress said Gandhi remains committed to an inclusive and democratic India. Hindustan Times notes Arshad also accused Kumaraswamy of helping PM Modi run a 'dictator-type style of government'.
The Vande Mataram row centres on a Congress Working Committee decision to abide by its 1937 resolution and sing only the first two stanzas of the national song at party events. The Congress, citing historian Sugata Bose, says this was done on Rabindranath Tagore's advice for inclusivity. PM Modi has called this act 'fragmentation' that sowed seeds of Partition. The political clash over the song is set to continue.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Times Now and Hindustan Times both lead with Kumaraswamy's personal attack on Sonia Gandhi's Italian heritage, framing the row around her nationality. The Hindu takes a broader view, focusing on the 1937 Congress resolution and the historical context of Vande Mataram, giving the Congress's explanation more space. Times Now omits the Congress rebuttal almost entirely, while Hindustan Times includes it prominently. The coverage shows a predictable political divide: Kumaraswamy's side personalises the issue, while the Congress defends on principle and history. The careful reader should note that the core dispute, what Gandhi's hand gesture meant, remains unresolved and is now overshadowed by the origin-of-birth attack. Watch for how the BJP and Congress use this ahead of the next election cycle.
Coverage: 3 sources, 1 right-leaning, 2 neutral
Sources (3): timesnownews.com (right leaning), hindustantimes.com (neutral report), thehindu.com (neutral report)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above. Methodology and corrections.
Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources.
