Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri has stirred controversy by claiming that India’s national anthem Jana Gana Mana was originally written to “welcome the British”. Speaking at an event in Honnavar, Karnataka, held to mark 150 years of Vande Mataram, Kageri said the song Vande Mataram should have been chosen as the national anthem instead.
According to the Deccan Herald, Kageri said, “Jana Gana Mana and Vande Mataram are equal in stature, but Vande Mataram deserves the prominence it never got. Its contribution to the freedom struggle must serve as an inspiration to all. It must reach schools, colleges, youth, and the masses.”
He went on to say that although both songs were respected, the national anthem “was composed to welcome the British”, adding that “our ancestors decided to keep Vande Mataram as well as Jana Gana Mana, and we have accepted this.”
Kageri’s comments have drawn sharp criticism from opposition leaders. Karnataka minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge called his statement “utter nonsense”, accusing the BJP of spreading distorted historical claims. “Another day, another RSS WhatsApp history lesson,” Kharge said on social media.
Kharge clarified that Rabindranath Tagore had written Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata in 1911, and the first stanza of it later became Jana Gana Mana. “It was first sung at the Indian National Congress in Calcutta, not as a royal tribute,” Kharge added. “Tagore himself clarified that it hails the ‘Dispenser of India’s destiny’, not George V or any other British king.”
He further accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the BJP, of having a “tradition of disrespecting the Constitution, the tricolour, and the national anthem.”
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) also condemned Kageri’s remarks, calling them “disgraceful” and “an insult to Tagore and India’s identity.” In a statement on social media, the party said, “The BJP despises Tagore because his universal ideals cannot be caged within their narrow, divisive, and parochial mindset. To insult the author of our national anthem is to insult India itself, its culture, and its intellect.”
The controversy comes as the Union government launches a national campaign celebrating 150 years of Vande Mataram. The campaign, running until Constitution Day on November 26, includes public recitations and cultural programmes across the country.
Jana Gana Mana was composed by Rabindranath Tagore in 1911 and adopted as India’s national anthem on January 24, 1950. Vande Mataram, written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1875, is officially recognised as the national song and was a powerful symbol of India’s freedom struggle.
While the Constituent Assembly gave both songs equal honour, the Constitution formally mentions only the national anthem.
