Picture : @ani_digital/x
In a superb counter- attack with measured words Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of committing a ‘big sin’ by creating a controversy over Vande Mataram and claimed that the government pushed for a debate on the national song as the West Bengal assembly polls were approaching.
Participating in a discussion in the Lok Sabha on 150 years of national song Vande Mataram, she hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying ‘he is not the prime minister he used to be as his self-confidence is decreasing and his policies are weakening the country’.
Priyanka Gandhi said the government wanted the debate to divert attention from people’s problems and make fresh allegations against those who sacrificed for the country’s freedom.
“… Whatever complaints you have against (Jawaharlal) Nehru, whatever mistakes you think he made… if you want to hurl abuses, if you want to insult as much as you like, please make a list of that too… 999 insults, 9,999 insults… make a list, and then we will fix a time.
“Just like we debated for 10 hours today on Vande Mataram, in the same way, we will ask the Speaker, we will fix a time 10 hours, 20 hours, 40 hours, however many hours it takes for your complaint to be fully addressed,” she said.
“Let’s close the chapter for once and all. After that, let’s talk about today’s issues – price rise and unemployment,” she added.
Asserting that Vande Mataram was in the heart of every Indian, she said that by creating divisions and controversy over the national song, the BJP was committing a ‘big sin’ and that the Congress would not be party to it.
नेहरू जी पर सवाल उठाने वाले सुन लें 👇 pic.twitter.com/uNrpOVmDHS
— Congress (@INCIndia) December 8, 2025
Launching a strong defence of India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was repeatedly criticised by treasury bench members during the debate, Priyanka Gandhi said Prime Minister Modi has been the country’s PM for about 12 years, while Jawaharlal Nehru had spent as many years in jail for the independence of the country.
“He was then the prime minister for 17 years and if he had not made ISRO, there would not have been your Mangalyaan; if he had not set up the DRDO, Tejas would not have been there; if IITs and IIMs had not been established, then we would not have been ahead in the Information Technology sector.
“If AIIMS had not been formed, we would not have been able to face the COVID pandemic. If he had not made BHEL, SAIL, Bhakra Nangal, then how would Viksit Bharat be achieved,” she said.
“Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru lived for this country and breathed his last while serving the country,” she said.
Priyanka Gandhi said that though PM Modi gives a good speech, there is one shortcoming that he is ‘weak on facts’.
She alleged that the Vande Mataram debate is being held to divert attention because the government wants to hide the reality of present times and divert attention from the real problems of the people.
“The youth of the country are worried, they are troubled, there are paper leaks happening, there is unemployment, why are we not discussing these issues in the House? Why are we not discussing the tampering with reservations here? Why strong steps are not being taken for improving the situation of women,” Priyanka Gandhi said.
