
The BJP and Congress traded accusations on Independence Day over a video from the Congress event at Indira Bhawan, New Delhi. The BJP alleged Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge tried to halt…
The BJP and Congress traded accusations on Independence Day over a video from the Congress event at Indira Bhawan, New Delhi. The BJP alleged Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge tried to halt the full rendition of Vande Mataram. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh denied this, saying the complete version was sung and Gandhi was asking for a chair for Kharge, who had been standing for some time.

A separate dispute occurred at the Kozhikode Corporation function, where BJP councillors sang Vande Mataram while LDF and UDF members recited Jana Gana Mana. Mayor O Sadasivan said the song was not on the agenda and the councillors had not sought permission. The BJP said it would take legal action.
The claim that one gesture proves contempt for the national song is political theatre, while dismissing every concern as manufactured is equally lazy. A song’s constitutional status does not settle what happened in a video, and partisan allegations are not evidence. The sensible test is simple: establish whether the full rendition was completed at Indira Bhawan and whether any organiser formally objected in Kozhikode, rather than judging intent from clipped footage.
Sources (3): timesnownews.com, english.mathrubhumi.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources.