Political differences have come to the fore between Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Congress over singing 'Vande Mataram' in full. 'What does Congress want? Do you want to put Kashmiri people in jail for not saying Vande Mataram? Omar Abdullah raised this angry question while talking to reporters in Srinagar on Thursday. He hit back at the Congress and said that it has now become legally mandatory to sing the entire 'Vande Mataram'.
Omar Abdullah said that if Congress was against this law, then it should have stopped it from being passed in Parliament. Now that the law has come into force, it has become legally mandatory to follow it. According to law, 'Vande Mataram' is required to be sung in full at all official places where the national anthem is sung. This rule is not limited to Jammu and Kashmir only, but applies to the entire country. Therefore, government programs in Congress-ruled states will also have to follow this rule, he said.
'Vande Mataram' was sung in full in the presence of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and National Conference President Farooq Abdullah at the inaugural ceremony of the first International Film Festival in Jammu and Kashmir. Congress had objected to this. Congress General Secretary K. C. Venugopal had appealed to the National Conference to sing only the first two verses. Citing the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad and Rabindranath Tagore, Venugopal had said that the historical role of freedom fighters should be respected. Now Omar Abdullah has given a sharp reply on this.
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