Mamata Banerjee said that people can't bow their heads to powers intent on destroying the country (File)
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said that the national anthem "Jana Gana Mana" has inspired countrymen to stay united.
Remembering Rabindranath Tagore, the Nobel Laureate, who penned "Jana Gana Mana", Ms Banerjee also referred to the poet's "Amar Sonar Bangla" that was written to protest against the partition of Bengal by the British in 1905.
She said Tagore's way of protesting against the partition of Bengal showed people "the way".
"Jana Gana Mana was first sung on this day in 1911. Over the years, our National Anthem has united us & inspired the nation. The song is composed by Rabindranath Tagore. He is our pride," Mamata Banerjee tweeted.
"Through his protests in 1905, for united #Bangla, he has shown us the way," the Trinamool Congress chief wrote on her Twitter handle.
"Jana Gana Mana" was sung for the first time at the Calcutta session of the Congress. On January 24, 1950, the first stanza of the song "Bharata Bhagyo Bidhata" was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India as the national anthem.
Tagore's "Amar Sonar Bangla" was adopted as the national anthem by the Bangladesh government in 1971.
Mamata Banerjee has been protesting against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the proposed NRC stating that the country is facing a new crisis in which divide and rule is the law.
Ms Banerjee had said that the people cannot bow their heads to powers intent on destroying the country.