Opposition slams Vande Mataram Bill, alleges assault on secularism

Opposition leaders criticised the Vande Mataram Bill, alleging it undermines secularism, religious freedom and the Constituent Assembly's decision to adopt only the first two stanzas. They accused the government of politicising the national song and violating constitutional principles

New Delhi: Leaders from opposition parties on Thursday criticised the Vande Mataram Bill passed by the Lok Sabha, alleging that it violated the secular character of the Constitution, infringed upon religious freedom and sought to impose the full version of the national song despite the Constituent Assembly having accepted only its first two stanzas.

DMK MP Kanimozhi stated that her party opposed the legislation, calling it an attempt to create polarisation. “The Vande Mataram Bill is against the secularism of our nation. Our founding fathers were very clear that only the first two stanzas should be sung. Now, the government is insisting all the stanzas should be sung. It will hurt the sentiments of people of different faiths.

---

Through this Bill, the government is trying to polarise and divide our country,” she told reporters in Parliament House complex. DMK MP A Raja said he had moved an amendment seeking that only what was approved by the Constituent Assembly on January 24, 1950, be incorporated into the law.

He accused the government of “committing fraud” by stating in the Bill that the Constituent Assembly approved the full text of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s composition.

“The Constituent Assembly accepted only two stanzas, in line with the decision taken earlier by the Congress Working Committee. The remaining stanzas were not accepted. If the Constituent Assembly approved only two stanzas, how can the government now go beyond that? It is unconstitutional,” Raja said.

He emphasised that leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, and Syama Prasad Mookerjee had agreed that only the first two stanzas should be used.

TMC leader Saugata Roy described the legislation as unnecessary. “This Bill was not needed. We have no objection to Vande Mataram being sung, but Rabindranath Tagore did not want the full Vande Mataram to be the national song. These people have gone even further than Tagore,” he said.

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi alleged that the legislation violated the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom. “Vande Mataram involves worship of gods and goddesses and violates Articles 25, 26 and 29 of the Constitution. When you recite Jana Gana Mana, you see a picture of the nation, but Vande Mataram is a prayer. I am a Muslim, and I worship none but Allah. This is a grave violation of Article 25,” Owaisi said.

He also claimed there was no formal resolution of the Constituent Assembly declaring Vande Mataram as the national song and alleged that the legislation was aimed at turning India into a “Hindu theocratic country”. Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda acknowledged that Vande Mataram is an integral part of India’s freedom movement and symbolises patriotism but warned against politicising it.

“My late grandfather Chaudhary Ranbir Singh was imprisoned by the British for singing Vande Mataram. There is no doubt that it is a symbol of patriotism. However, it is not a symbol of any political party. This issue should not be politicised,” Hooda said.

On Thursday, Parliament passed a bill making any insult to the national song Vande Mataram a punishable offence, with the Lok Sabha clearing the legislation amid commotion.

The government asserted that the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, would grant Vande Mataram a status on par with that of the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, making any insult to Vande Mataram a criminal offence.