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BJP accused the TMC of neglecting Bankim Chandra, while Trinamool said the saffron party showed little respect for Bengal’s cultural pride
Kolkata: BJP workers pay tribute to Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, writer of the national song Vande Mataram, during celebrations to mark 150 years of the song. (PTI Photo)
A new political confrontation has erupted in West Bengal between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), this time over two of Bengal’s most revered cultural icons, Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay.
The controversy was triggered after Karnataka BJP leader Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri claimed that “Vande Mataram should have been the national anthem”. Kageri, a former Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, sparked a row by suggesting that India’s national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, was originally written as a “welcome song for British officials”. He made these remarks at an event celebrating the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, arguing that Vande Mataram would have been a better choice for the national anthem.
He later retracted the remarks following widespread criticism, saying he did not wish to prolong an “unnecessary public debate”.
The statement, however, sparked outrage within the TMC, which termed it an insult to Rabindranath Tagore, the Nobel laureate who composed Jana Gana Mana, India’s national anthem.
The BJP, however, hit back sharply, accusing the TMC government of deliberately downplaying the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, a song written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, to appease a particular community.
State BJP president Shamik Bhattacharya, in a statement to News18, said, “They want to appease one community, and that is why they are not celebrating it like others. We know what happens in Bengal. We know how she supports one side. We are celebrating Vande Mataram everywhere.”
On the day when BJP offices across the state organised large-scale celebrations of Vande Mataram, the TMC held a quieter observance, placing flowers before a photograph of Rabindranath Tagore. The party accused the BJP of “trying to create a division between Bankim Chandra and Rabindranath Tagore” for political mileage.
Rejecting the BJP’s allegations, the TMC said that the state government had already set up a special committee in honour of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. The ruling party also criticised the BJP for what it described as “distorting history”, after some BJP leaders allegedly claimed that Tagore wrote Jana Gana Mana to appease the British — a claim widely discredited by historians.
The TMC is set to hit the streets today over the Karnataka BJP leader’s remarks on Tagore. Senior AITC leaders will pay floral tributes to Tagore’s statue at Thakurbari (Jorasanko) before staging a protest against what they have termed the “Bangla-Birodhi BJP”. The gathering is scheduled to begin at 1 pm and will be led by Dr Shashi Panja and Vivek Gupta.
At present, both parties are locked in a bitter political tussle, each invoking Bengal’s cultural heritage to strengthen their narrative. While the BJP accuses the TMC of neglecting icons like Bankim Chandra, the TMC counters that the BJP’s rhetoric shows a lack of respect for Bengal’s literary and cultural pride.
India’s national song Vande Mataram marked its 150th anniversary on 7 November. Composed in Sanskrit by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, renowned as Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, during the 1870s, the song became a timeless anthem of courage and unity, inspiring millions during India’s struggle for independence.
In 1950, the Constituent Assembly of India formally adopted the song, and Dr Rajendra Prasad, India’s first President, accorded it the status of the national song. He noted that Vande Mataram had played a vital role in India’s fight for independence and deserved to be honoured equally with the national anthem Jana Gana Mana.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a year-long commemoration of Vande Mataram in Delhi and also released a commemorative stamp and coin on the occasion.
Kamalika Sengupta is the Editor (East) at CNN-News18 / News18.com, focusing on politics, defence, and women’s issues. She is a seasoned multimedia journalist with over 20 years of experience reporting from East…Read More
Kamalika Sengupta is the Editor (East) at CNN-News18 / News18.com, focusing on politics, defence, and women’s issues. She is a seasoned multimedia journalist with over 20 years of experience reporting from East… Read More
November 08, 2025, 09:15 IST
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