Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said that the national song 'Vande Mataram' should be recited and sung in every school so that no other 'Jinnah' can rise to challenge India's integrity.
Addressing an 'Ekta Yatra' (Unity March) event in Gorakhpur, he said this step would inspire feelings of reverence and pride among citizens towards Bharat Mata and the motherland.
"There should be a sense of respect for the national song Vande Mataram. We will make its singing compulsory in every school and educational institution of Uttar Pradesh," he said.
Adityanath said, “Every school and college should recite and sing Vande Mataram with pride and a sense of gratitude. We must identify and act against those who weaken our unity so that no other ‘Jinnah’ can ever rise to challenge India’s integrity.”
Invoking All-India Muslim League leaders Mohammad Ali Jinah and Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Adityanath said that those who oppose the national song “Vande Mataram” are insulting India's unity and integrity.
"Even today, we expect everyone living in India to be loyal to the nation and work for its unity," he said while participating in ‘Ekta Yatra’ (Unity March) and collective singing of “Vande Mataram” in Gorakhpur.
He said when events were organised to mark the 150th anniversary of “Vande Mataram”, the same voices of opposition resurfaced.
“A Samajwadi Party MP again protested against the national song. These are the same people who skip the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the architect of India's integrity, but shamelessly attend events honouring Jinnah," Adityanath said.
He asked if the country fails to honour its national heroes, where will it go? The extremism, Naxalism, and terrorism that constantly challenge India's unity and integrity are fuelled by those who insult national icons and revolutionaries, the chief minister said.
Such actions embolden separatist forces that threaten the country's national identity, he added.
"It is now our duty to identify and oppose all elements that divide society, whether in the name of caste, region, or language. These divisions are part of a conspiracy to create new Jinnahs,” he said.
Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pakistan on 14 August 1947. He then became Pakistan's first governor-general until his death a year later in 1948.
Jauhar was the co-founder of the All-India Muslim League.
He urged people to ensure that no new Jinnah ever arises in India again, and if anyone dares to challenge the nation's integrity, “we must bury such divisive intent before it can take root.” The chief minister said every citizen of India must stand united for this cause.
Adityanath said there is no justification for opposing “Vande Mataram”.
The "venom" started spreading against the national song after Jauhar refused to stand up for it in the 1923 Congress session. Under the same Congress, Rabindranath Tagore had sung the full song at a party session in 1896, the chief minister added.
"From 1896 to 1922, Vande Mataram was sung at every Congress session, but in 1923, when Jauhar became the Congress president, he walked out as soon as the song began and refused to participate. Brothers and sisters, that opposition to Vande Mataram became one of the unfortunate causes of India's Partition," he said.
"If only the Congress had expelled Jauhar at the time and honoured national unity through Vande Mataram, the Partition of India would never have happened," Adityanath said.
With inputs from PTI
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