Govt mulls implementing same protocols for Vande Matram as that of national anthem

PTC News Desk: The central government is planning to implement same protocols for recitation of the national song  'Vande Matram' similar to those in place for the national anthem Jana Gana Mana. 

According to the sources, the Home Ministry is discussing weather the same rules and regulations should be applied to Vande Matram or not. Howver no final decision has been taken yet. 

It was adopted as a national song in 1950.

"Vande Mataram", a Sanskrit phrase meaning "I bow to you, Mother," crafts a complex narrative that intertwines nationalism, patriotism, spirituality, and identity. Written as a hymn, part of the 'Anand Math' novel by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya, the 'Vande Mataram' slogan became a rallying cry for freedom fighters in their movement to liberate India from colonial rule.

The Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971 currently is only applicable to the national anthem. No such provision mandating people to stand during the recitation of the national song has been enforced yet. 

Several petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court and the high courts to extend same provisions to Vande Matram. The government, however, stated that these rules apply only to Jana Gana Mana, and not to 'Vande Mataram'.

The legal provisions say that anyone who disrupts or prevents others from respecting the national anthem can be sentenced to up to three years in prison. 

Meanwhile Vande Matram has been embroiled in the controversy with some Muslim organisations objecting recitation of the national song. During the Winter Session of the Parliament, the BJP had also accused the Congress of truncating the original six-stanza song due to appeasement politics.