Union Govt Clears Proposal to Treat Vande Mataram at Par With National Anthem, Make Disruptions Punishable

New Delhi: The Union cabinet has cleared a proposal that will put Vande Mataram on par with the national anthem – Jana Gana Mana – adding it to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.

Once the parliament passes the amendment, any disruption, disturbance or act of disrespect during the singing of Vande Mataram will attract penalties and punishment up to three years' imprisonment – the same as the provisions for the national anthem.

This comes months after a home ministry order directed all six stanzas of Vande Mataram to be played at official functions. The order, issued on January 28, also noted that if the national song and the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, are sung or played together, then Vande Mataram should be played first, and that the audience shall stand in attention during the song.

The timing of the amendment, Economic Times reported, is significant as it coincides with the Modi government’s year-long celebrations around the song. It also comes just after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s historical electoral win in West Bengal.

The 1971 Act prescribes strict rules prohibiting the desecration of or insult to the country's national symbols, including the national flag, national emblem, national anthem, national motto, the constitution, and the map of India. The rules also include a fixed duration and the requirement that all present stand in attention. Now, the proposed amendment seeks to extend similar provisions to national song too.

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee wrote ‘Bande Mataram’ in the late 19th century in Sanskritised Bengali. The original version consisted of six stanzas. The song was first inserted into the pages of his novel, Anandamath, set during the late 18th century when famine and rebellion tore through Bengal.

In 1950, alongside ‘Jana Gana Mana’ as the national anthem, Vande Mataram received the honour of a national song following a decision of the Constituent Assembly, under the guidance of Rajendra Prasad, considering the historic role it played in India’s freedom struggle.

However, only the first two stanzas of the song were adopted as the national song. Unlike the national anthem, so far, there was no official protocol for singing or performing Vande Mataram.

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