Give Vande Mataram equal status with National Anthem: JP Nadda

New Delhi: The Leader of the Rajya Sabha, JP Nadda, on Thursday concluded the discussion on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in the Upper House. Nadda asserted that Vande Mataram should be accorded the same status as the National Anthem and the National Flag.

"I want to say with a sense of full responsibility that the respect and status that Vande Mataram was to be accorded, it did not receive, and those in power at the time are fully responsible for it," he said. "...Meaningful discussion on the 150th anniversary can take place only if we resolve that Vande Mataram has the same status as the National Anthem and the National Flag in the Constitution, and it should be added."

Nadda also accused the Congress of appeasement and of negating the importance of Vande Mataram during both the pre- and post-Independence periods, even though the national song, he said, is rooted in India's ancient cultural heritage.


He clarified the objective of the debate was not to defame former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru but to keep the historical record straight.