Vande Mataram Must Play Before National Anthem at Official Events: Centre
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed all states and central ministries to strictly comply with the rule that the national song, Vande Mataram, be played before the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, whenever both are performed at official events.
In a letter dated July 9 addressed to chief secretaries of states and secretaries of union ministries, Joint Secretary Arvind Khare reiterated that according to orders relating to the national song, when both are sung or played, the national song must be performed first. The letter also emphasized that the correct script, text, diction, and pronunciation of both the national song and the national anthem should be strictly followed.
The MHA attached a previous order listing the occasions when the national song and national anthem must be played, either at the beginning or end of an event, or twice. The ministry requested that appropriate instructions be issued to all concerned institutions and organisations under their jurisdiction for strict compliance.
Earlier, on February 6, the MHA had advised that all six stanzas of Vande Mataram, which take around 3.10 minutes to sing, be performed at official events and given precedence over the national anthem. Vande Mataram, written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and published in his novel Anandamath in the early 1880s, was adopted as the national song by the Indian National Congress in 1937 and later accorded constitutional status as the national song of India. Jana Gana Mana was written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore and is the national anthem.
On May 5, the Union Cabinet approved a proposal to amend The Prevention of Insults To National Honour Act, 1971 to make any insult or obstruction to the singing of Vande Mataram a punishable offence. A bill to this effect is expected to be introduced in the Monsoon Session of Parliament, which begins on July 20. Currently, insults to the national anthem, the national flag, and the Constitution are punishable under the 1971 Act with imprisonment of up to three years, a fine, or both.
