The country was celebrating the 80th anniversary of independence on 15 August 2026. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation by hoisting the tricolor from the Red Fort in Delhi, an Independence Day program was also organized at the Congress headquarters. But after a video of this program went viral on social media, the political temperature rose. BJP leaders alleged that the top leadership of the Congress objected to the full singing of Vande Mataram, while the Congress rejected this allegation and gave a different reason.
Meanwhile, the old video of Atal Bihari Vajpayee again came into discussion. The same video in which he is heard saying, “The mill of democracy runs slowly, but grinds finely. On the other hand, people are trolling Congress on social media. Do you understand the whole matter?
Controversy over Vande Mataram in Congress headquarters?
After a video of Congress's Independence Day program surfaced, BJP raised questions on Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. It was alleged that when the singing of Vande Mataram proceeded, top Congress leaders felt uneasy and signals were given to stop it. As soon as the video went viral, BJP leaders started attacking it by linking it to Congress's attitude towards the national anthem.
However, it is important to clarify here that the political interpretation of the controversial video and the official stand of Congress are different. Congress has refused to accept this as an attempt to stop Vande Mataram.
What explanation did Congress give?
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that Sonia Gandhi had asked not to stop Vande Mataram, but to arrange a chair for party president Mallikarjun Kharge, as he was standing for a long time. That is, according to Congress, the viral video is being presented in the wrong context.
On the other hand, Congress MP Pawan Kheda cited the party's old tradition regarding singing Vande Mataram. He says that in Congress programs the same part is sung which was decided in the Congress Working Committee meeting of October 1937 and in which the tradition of using the opening lines was formed after the advice of Rabindranath Tagore.
Therefore, there are two claims facing each other in this entire controversy. BJP's allegation that the Congress leadership was uncomfortable with the full singing of Vande Mataram and Congress's clarification that the matter was related to the arrangement of the chair for Kharge. It is important for readers to understand this difference.
Why is Atal ji's old video going viral now?
Amidst the Vande Mataram controversy, that old video of Atal Bihari Vajpayee again came into discussion, which was shared by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on social media on 5 July 2026. Attacking the Congress with the video, Rijiju had written that the Congress was suffering the “results of its own evil deeds” and Atal ji had long ago warned the Congress about the bad consequences of its arrogance. In the video, Vajpayee is heard saying while targeting Congress. “The mill of democracy runs slowly, but grinds finely. It is grinding.” Congress does not understand. Nor is he ready to accept logic.
This post of Rijiju came at a time when there was a sharp confrontation between the government and the opposition in the Parliament. Therefore, linking Atal ji's statement with the current political situation, Rijiju tried to give a message to the Congress that the final decision of the political struggle is not decided by the uproar in the House, but by the democratic process and the decision of the people.
Had Sushma Swaraj also justified the stalling of Parliament?
Here an interesting political paradox of history emerges. On April 30, 2013, the then leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, had responded to Congress's allegations regarding the deadlock in Parliament. At that time BJP and other opposition parties were protesting against the government on many issues including the coal scam. Sushma had said that it was wrong to hold the opposition irresponsible for the obstruction in the functioning of Parliament and “the government itself is completely responsible for this situation”. He accused the government of continuous scams and suppressing them.
Sushma had also made it clear that the opposition would not stop the passage of finance bills, but the government should not expect further support from them. That is, at that time, BJP, while being in opposition, considered protests and walkouts in Parliament as political weapons.
Does Atal's statement about 'millstone of democracy' apply to Congress today?
This is the biggest political question of the current controversy. Atal ji's old video is in discussion today because BJP is linking the same statement with the current political behavior of Congress. The Vande Mataram controversy has given a new political context to this old video.
Today, the controversy over Vande Mataram has again brought Atal ji's old statement into the center of political debate. For BJP, this is an opportunity to attack Congress ideologically, while Congress is calling it a wrong political interpretation. In such a situation, the real question is not only what is seen in the viral video, but also whether both the parties are ready to face their respective historical records and current statements instead of doing politics on national symbols?
This question takes this entire controversy beyond Vande Mataram and connects it to the changing language of democracy, nationalism and political opposition in Indian politics. BJP also alleges that Congress has moved away from the basic principles of democracy and is continuously proving unsuccessful in gauging the pulse of the public.