New Delhi, 8 December (H.S.): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated a special discussion in the Lok Sabha marking 150 years of Vande Mataram, describing the song’s journey as one of struggle, inspiration, and historic milestones that shaped India’s national consciousness.

PM Modi said that when Vande Mataram completed 50 years, the nation was still in chains of colonial rule, and when it turned 100, India was shackled by the Emergency—an era when the Constitution was throttled and patriots were imprisoned. He hailed Vande Mataram as the “mantra of unity and sacrifice” that infused strength and courage into the freedom movement.

Recalling the song’s origins, the Prime Minister said that following the First War of Independence in 1857, as British oppression deepened, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay responded to the colonial slogan “God Save the Queen” with a powerful call of resistance through Vande Mataram.

So impactful was the song, he said, that the British grew fearful and moved to ban its singing and publication by law.“Vande Mataram was not mere political rhetoric,” Modi asserted.

“It was a sacred resolve to liberate Mother India from bondage.” He added that, after 1857, the British realized that ruling India would not be easy and therefore advanced their “divide and rule” policy from Bengal. During that period, Bengal’s intellectual awakening and the rise of Vande Mataram reignited the nation’s spirit.

PM Modi noted that the country now stands at a crossroads of historic anniversaries — 150 years of Vande Mataram, the 150th birth anniversaries of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Bhagwan Birsa Munda, and the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur.

“This era invites us to remember the inspiring episodes that moulded the soul of Indian history,” he said.

Concluding his remarks, the Prime Minister observed that Vande Mataram guided the movement that ultimately brought independence in 1947 and symbolizes a legacy beyond political divisions. “Today’s debate is not about ruling or opposition; it is about expressing gratitude for the sacrifices that gifted us this great democratic institution,” he declared, calling the 150th anniversary a moment of renewed national pride for both the Parliament and the country.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar