Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for not appreciating freedom fighters amid the ongoing Vande Mataram debate in Parliament, asking, "Who does the BJP actually appreciate if the party does not appreciate Netaji and Rabindranath Tagore?"

Speaking at a press conference in Kolkata, Banerjee said, "I heard some people from the BJP say that they don't appreciate Netaji. You don't appreciate Netaji, Rabindranath Tagore, Raja Ramohun Roy, then who do you appreciate?"

During the Lok Sabha debate on Vande Mataram, Congress Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that Modi frequently mentioned Pandit Nehru’s name but that it was Congress that gave importance to Vande Mataram.

"Congress supported Vande Mataram. Congress gave importance to Vande Mataram to make it the national song of India. PM Modi takes Nehru Ji's name and Congress's name in every debate," Gogoi said, citing frequent mentions of Nehru and Congress in various official addresses.

Gogoi added, "People of India are suffering, and there is no mention of it. PM Modi did not mention the Delhi blast once. We are not able to protect our citizens, neither in Delhi nor in Pahalgam. People are unable to breathe."

On the sixth day of the Winter Session, PM Modi hailed Vande Mataram as a "powerful mantra" that inspired India's freedom struggle and said the government aims to restore its glory for future generations.

Addressing the Lok Sabha, Modi stated, "Vande Mataram was not just a mantra for political independence. It was not limited to our independence; it was way beyond that... During our Vedas, it was said, This land is my mother, and I am the son of the soil... Vande Mataram is a modern avatar of our great cultural legacy."

He also recalled the British divide-and-rule politics, noting their partition of Bengal in 1905, but said, "Vande Mataram stood like a rock" during that time.

With inputs from ANI