Parliament spent 10 hours on a song!

The winter session of Parliament is ongoing with its scheduled days, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi initiating a 10-hour long debate in Parliament on "Vande Mataram" on December 8. On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Vande Mataram song, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered countless unknown freedom fighters in his speech. He said, "How many of our freedom fighters happily accepted the noose while chanting 'Vande Mataram'. Even while living in various prisons, everyone had the same mantra, 'Vande Mataram'." Meanwhile, the Prime Minister also mentioned the historical newspapers named Vande Mataram.

Parliament spent 10 hours discussing a song, you know that every minute in Parliament costs Rs 2,50,000 of public taxes, but 10 precious hours, i.e., 600 minutes, were wasted in a futile debate, you can guess how much money was spent in this session. You must know that "Vande Mataram" is part of the famous novel "Anandmath" written by Bengali novelist Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1882. Anandmath is a novel that has fueled anti-Muslim sentiments and has Muslims taking oaths against their deities, and also talks about demolishing mosques and building temples on them.

Now, before shedding light on what is presented in Vande Mataram, it seems appropriate to present the Urdu translation of Vande Mataram so that everyone can understand the content directly by seeing the translation. The translation is as follows: "I worship you, O my good water, good fruits, fragrant dry southern winds, and lush fields, my mother, shining with moonlit nights, blooming flowers, dense trees, sweet smiles, sweet language, joyful, blessed mother, I worship you, O my mother. The enthusiastic voices of 30 million people, the swords that can be grasped by 60 million arms, are you weak even after so much power, O my mother? You are the strength of my arms, I kiss your feet, O my mother. You are my knowledge, you are my religion, you are my conscience, you are my goal, you are the spirit of the body, you are the power of the arms, you are the truth of the hearts, your beloved idol is in the temple, you are Durga, you are the ten-armed one, you are Kamla, you are the spring of lotus flowers, you are water, you are the giver of knowledge, I am your servant, I am the servant of the servant, I am the servant of the servant of the servant, O my good fruit mother. I am your servant, O my sacred, beautiful, great, and eternal mother, I am your servant. O my mother, I am your servant." (This Urdu translation has been published by the All India Dini Talimi Council, Lucknow).

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee wrote it on November 7, 1875, but it was first sung by Rabindranath Tagore at a Congress meeting in Calcutta in 1896, and he also composed its tune. Ten years later, at the Banaras session, Sarala Devi Chaudhurani sang it melodiously, and the poem gained national importance when Lala Lajpat Rai published a journal named Vande Mataram. However, when this poem was presented as a symbol of nationalism, Rabindranath Tagore himself opposed it and wrote a letter to Subhash Chandra Bose in 1937, stating that "the basic belief of Vande Mataram is the worship of Goddess Durga, and it is so clear that there is no room for any debate on this."

The Supreme Court of India rejected a petition to equate the national song "Vande Mataram" with the national anthem "Jana Gana Mana", citing that there is no concept of a national song. The bench of Justices Dipak Misra, R. Banumathi, and S.M. Malik Arjun Gauda rejected the petition filed by BJP leader and senior lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay, which appealed for the promotion of the national anthem, national flag, and national song under Article 51A of the Constitution. Justice Misra said in his brief order that Article 51A only mentions the national flag and national anthem, so as far as the national song (Vande Mataram) is concerned, we do not want to initiate any new debate on this.

Vande Mataram, which is part of the novel Anandmath, was written in 1875, but initially, it did not gain much popularity and remained in obscurity for a long time. This song gained popularity when its creator Bankim Chandra Chatterjee included it in his novel Anandmath. The novel is basically about the war between Hindu and Mughal rulers, and it is an anti-Muslim novel with fictional characters. The main character of the novel is a Brahmin saint named Bhawanand, who incites Hindus against Mughal rulers.

The novel's characters reveal that it is filled with hatred and sectarianism. A quote from the novel is when Bhawanand tells another character, Mahendra, "Our religion, our caste, our honor are in danger, and as long as Muslims are in this country, we will never be able to live with our heads held high." In response to Mahendra's question of whether he would fight alone, Bhawanand says, "When 30 million voices rise, and 20 million arms wield swords, will my mother be weak even then?

The basic concept of Anandmath is about those saints or children who left their homes and dedicated their lives to their motherland, and they worshiped their motherland in the form of Mother Kali. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee linked patriotism with religion and religion with patriotism. Seeing this aspect of Anandmath and the concept of Mother Kali, there is no doubt that Bankim Chandra's nationalism was not Indian nationalism.

In his book "Autobiography of a Non-Indian", Niraj Sehgal Chaudhary writes, "Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and Ramesh Chandra's historical writings have eulogized the Hindu rebellion against Muslim rule, and Muslims have been presented in an inappropriate manner." One thing to consider is that in our country, India, all the things that have been given the status of national identity are the same, such as the national flag "Tricolor" is one, the national animal "Lion" is one, the national bird "Peacock" is one, and the national emblem Ashoka's "Lion Capital" is one.

When every national identity is singular, why can't the national song be singular? Indian Muslims have never objected to the Tricolor, nor have they said that the lion is Durga's ride, so we do not consider it our national animal. In such a case, why is the vulnerability of the country's largest minority, Muslims, not considered regarding the national song? In a country where no one is allowed to interfere in the religious matters of any religion, the national song directly affects the faith of Muslims.

Islam does not prohibit love for one's country; those who have studied the biography of the Prophet know that when he migrated from Mecca to Medina, he expressed his immense love for Mecca and said, "O Mecca! If your people had not forced me to leave, I would never have left." After that, when the Prophet made Medina his homeland, he loved Medina and prayed for its blessings. Therefore, Muslims, wherever they are, love their country as a Sunnah. However, Muslims can never worship their country; Muslims can be patriotic but not nationalists.

Therefore, raising fingers at Muslims' patriotism regarding the issue of Vande Mataram is purely mischievous, and Muslims cannot be bound by it, as any such move would be equivalent to depriving them of their religious freedom. The sacrifices of Muslims for the freedom of the country are evident, and India is a multi-religious and multi-cultural country, so the social and constitutional status of all religions is also considered.

However, after the BJP came to power, the RSS has been trying to impose Hindutva, and now that the BJP is fully drunk with power, the idea of establishing a Hindu nation and eliminating religious freedom in the light of Hindutva ideology has become a threat to all religious minorities. A minor example of this is the unnecessary 10-hour debate on Vande Mataram in Parliament. Before this, the triple talaq, polygamy, Waqf Amendment Bill, etc., all have the same purpose - to keep Muslims in fear about the protection of their religion, law, and faith.