Context

• The controversy surrounding Vande Mataram reflects ongoing struggles over historical memory, constitutional values, and the political ownership of nationalism.
• Although the song occupies a revered place in India’s anti-colonial heritage, its meaning has repeatedly been reshaped by competing visions of national identity.
• The current revival of debate in Parliament suggests an effort to reinterpret settled questions and redefine symbolic markers of national unity.

Historical Roots of the Song and Its Early Controversies

• Rabindranath Tagore’s 1896 Rendition and Controversy
  • Vande Mataram, composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in 1875, became a powerful emblem of India’s freedom struggle.
  • Rabindranath Tagore’s 1896 rendition at the Congress session embedded it within the nationalist imagination.
  • Yet its later stanzas, rich in Hindu goddess imagery, raised concerns among Muslim leaders who regarded certain verses as religiously exclusionary.
  • These objections gained urgency after the Government of India Act, 1935 ushered in provincial elections, compelling the Congress to adopt a more inclusive public posture.
• CWC Adoption of First Two Stanzas
  • A turning point came in 1937 when the Congress Working Committee, chaired by Jawaharlal Nehru and attended by major leaders such as Sardar Patel, Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, and Subhas Chandra Bose, unanimously resolved to adopt only the first two stanzas for public and official occasions.
  • Though Mahatma Gandhi was not a formal member, he was influential in shaping the final wording.
  • The committee affirmed the song’s historic significance while recognising the validity of Muslim objections.
  • The selected stanzas were deemed non-religious, inclusive, and reflective of the song’s essence.
  • This decision was guided by the need for communal harmony and the practical responsibility of administering provinces with diverse populations.

Constituent Assembly Debates: Settling the Question

• Following Independence, the Constituent Assembly revisited the status of national symbols.
• Its composition highlighted India’s pluralism: despite the post-Partition Hindu majority, leaders such as B.R. Ambedkar entered the Assembly through cross-community political arrangements.
• The Assembly considered three contenders, Vande Mataram, Sare Jahan Se Achha, and Jana Gana Mana.
• While Sare Jahan Se Achha carried secular appeal, concerns arose due to Allama Iqbal’s later association with the Pakistan movement.
• The Assembly ultimately selected Jana Gana Mana as the national anthem, while giving Vande Mataram a place of honour.
• Notably, the Constitution made no mention of a national song, allowing its status to remain customary rather than legal.
• The distinction became clearer in 1976 when the 42nd Constitutional Amendment introduced fundamental duties, including respect for the national anthem and flag, without extending similar provisions to the national song.

Legal and Judicial Interventions

• Courts have occasionally engaged with the question of Vande Mataram.
• In 2017, the Madras High Court suggested that schools sing it weekly and offices monthly, even recommending translation for those unable to sing it in Bengali or Sanskrit.
• The Delhi High Court considered petitions urging equal treatment of the national song and anthem.
• The Union government argued that while both deserve equal respect, only the national anthem enjoys legal protection under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, which criminalises disruptions to the anthem but provides no parallel regime for the national song.
• This distinction underscores the enduring legal separation between the two symbols.

Contemporary Revival of the Controversy: Symbolic Politics or Constitutional Engineering?

• The renewed parliamentary debate is striking because the issue was conclusively settled both in 1937 and during constitution-making.
• One explanation for its revival lies in symbolic politics, where invoking Vande Mataram allows contemporary leaders to present themselves as champions of nationalism while indirectly questioning the judgment of earlier figures such as Patel, Nehru, and Gandhi.
• Selective memory transforms a nuanced historical decision into a simplistic narrative of compromise.
• A second possibility is the intention to elevate the national song’s legal status.
• Proposals to create a new fundamental duty to respect Vande Mataram suggest the potential to reshape national symbols without constitutional amendment, echoing procedural strategies used in other policy domains.
• Such a move could eventually facilitate the introduction of a new national anthem or alter the established symbolic framework of the Republic.

Conclusion

• The evolution of Vande Mataram demonstrates how national symbols must adapt to pluralistic realities.
• Leaders such as Nehru, Patel, Gandhi, and Rajendra Prasad acted not out of hesitation but out of a commitment to inclusive nationalism.
• By respecting the song while choosing an anthem aligned with India’s secular ethos, the Constituent Assembly safeguarded national unity.
• True patriotism lies in recognising the historical complexity of national symbols and preserving the pluralistic balance that has shaped India’s democratic identity.