Vande Mataram was never anti-Islam: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the time had come for an unbiased evaluation of "Vande Mataram" and asserted that the entire song and the "Anand Math" book were never anti-Islam, but reflected the popular sentiments against the Nawab of Bengal and British imperialism.

Participating in the debate on the '150th anniversary of national song Vande Mataram', Rajnath also hit out at the Congress, claiming that the politics of appeasement led to the division of India.

"Now is the time for an unbiased evaluation of 'Vande Mataram' and its history," Rajnath said. "Everyone has heard the first two stanzas of 'Vande Mataram,' but many are not familiar with the rest. Most parts of the original version have been forgotten, and those stanzas depict the essence of India."

He noted that "Vande Mataram" is complete in itself, but there have been attempts to render it incomplete. He called for a return to the song's glory.

The minister pointed out that "Vande Mataram" was marginalised after Independence and did not receive the recognition it deserved. Singh said some people found the novel "Anand Math" to be communal, and it was for this reason that "Vande Mataram" was also targeted.

"If we go back to that era, which Anand Math depicts, it becomes clear that the subject matter was not against any religion or sect. At that time, Bengal was suffering from a severe famine, and the Nawab of Bengal was collecting heavy land revenue from the starving population under pressure from the British. Anand Math was written against this injustice," he said.

Rajnath accused the opposition parties of attacking bodies such as the Election Commission as part of a conspiracy to weaken the institutions of the country. He said constant migration, deaths and rapid urbanisation led to distortion of electoral rolls, and therefore "there is a need to carry out exercises like the special intensive revision (SIR) of voters' list".