Congress CWC meeting Vande Mataram 1937 stand first two stanzas: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting discussed the issue of ‘Vande Mataram’, with several leaders reiterating the party’s stance of 1937. It was decided in the meeting that the Congress will sing only the 1937 version (first two kadi/pada) of Vande Mataram in its programmes.
There is a dispute between the Congress and the ruling party regarding Vande Mataram. This issue was discussed at length in the Congress Working Committee meeting on Wednesday. According to sources, several leaders in the meeting reiterated the party’s stand of 1937. This meant that the Congress would use only the 1937 version (first two verses) in all its official programmes.
In a press conference held after the meeting, Rajya Sabha MP and Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “A motion was passed on Vande Mataram. When that motion was passed, Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru, Sardar Patel, Subhash Chandra Bose, Maulana Azad, Govind Vallabh Pant, Acharya Narendra Dev and other great leaders were present in the CWC meeting. Rabindranath Tagore’s The proposal was passed on advice and it was discussed again today. The Congress President also read out some parts of the proposal. There is no controversy in this, it is just being made a political issue.”
Congress made it clear that their stance has been clear from day one. The version of 28 October 1937 will remain forever. In the last meeting of the Constituent Assembly on 24 January 1950, Dr. Rajendra Prasad made it clear that ‘Jan-Gana-Man’ will remain the national anthem and ‘Vande Mataram’ will remain the national anthem.
Congress stand on delimitation
Clarifying its stance on the upcoming delimitation process, the Congress said that there is no need to increase the number of Lok Sabha seats. The party demands that the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha should be frozen at the current 543.
CWC meeting discusses 4 major national issues
The Working Committee meeting prepared the next roadmap on four important national themes:
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Paper Leak and Youth Demonstration: The government’s attitude towards student agitation against malpractices in NEET and other competitive examinations was criticized. After storming the Parliament, now the party will run ‘Chhatra Ki Goonj’ campaign in more than 800 cities of the country.
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Issue of ‘Chanda Chori’: The party will go to the booth and grassroots level about financial irregularities and fundraising process.
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Chinese encroachment in Arunachal: Chinese activities along the Arunachal Pradesh border were termed as a serious threat to national security.
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Changes in Education Policy: A concrete plan has been sought from the Chief Ministers of the Congress-ruled states to reform the state-level education system.
Apology to PM Modi regarding Haldwa incident
The Congress also attacked the BJP over the Haldwa incident. The party said that the behavior of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge after the public meeting was completely unacceptable.
Leaders said such treatment of the party president, a 13-time member of the House, showed the Sangh’s ‘highly casteist mentality’. Congress has demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in front of the country in this whole matter.