A dispute over the rendition of Vande Mataram at the inaugural ceremony of Jammu and Kashmir’s first International Film Festival has added fresh strain to the relationship between Congress and its ally, the National Conference (NC), within the INDIA bloc.

The full six-stanza version of the song was performed at the event in Srinagar. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and NC president Farooq Abdullah were present at the ceremony.

Congress calls for first two stanzas

The controversy escalated after Congress general secretary K C Venugopal called on the National Conference to follow the version consisting of the first two stanzas. Congress said its position reflected the judgment of several leaders of the freedom movement.

Venugopal’s intervention turned what began as a cultural programme at a public event into a political disagreement between two parties that are allies in Jammu and Kashmir and members of the INDIA bloc.

The Congress position focuses on limiting the rendition to the first two stanzas, while the performance at the film festival included all six. The dispute has brought the issue into the open between the two parties.

National Conference responds

NC legislator Tanvir Sadiq responded by sharing videos of Congress chief ministers singing the full version of Vande Mataram. His response highlighted what the National Conference presented as an inconsistency between the Congress’s current appeal and instances involving its own leaders.

The exchange has exposed another point of tension between Congress and the National Conference. The disagreement comes despite their alliance in Jammu and Kashmir and their association through the broader INDIA bloc.

The available source material does not indicate that either party has announced a change in its alliance arrangements. It does, however, identify the dispute as a development that has added strain to the Congress-NC relationship.

PDP also criticises dispute

The controversy has also drawn criticism from the Peoples Democratic Party. The source material does not specify the details of the PDP’s criticism, but its intervention widened the political response beyond the two parties directly involved.

For now, the dispute remains centred on whether the song should be performed in its full six-stanza form or limited to the first two stanzas. The public exchange between Congress and the National Conference has ensured that the issue is being viewed not only as a matter concerning the film festival, but also as a sign of tensions within the INDIA bloc.