A Home Ministry panel will study cases where people have been attacked for not standing up during the national anthem, the Hindustan Times reported.
The 12-member inter-ministerial panel was appointed in January to draft guidelines for playing the anthem in cinema halls and public places, the report quoted a senior ministry official as saying.
The government formed the panel when it asked the Supreme Court in January to put on hold its November 2016 order that made playing the national anthem in cinema halls mandatory.
The government had told the court then that it had set up a panel to frame guidelines on “all aspects relating to the playing and singing of the national anthem”, and said the guidelines will be ready in six months. After this, the Supreme Court modified its order that made it mandatory for cinema halls to play the national anthem before films.
A senior ministry official told the Hindustan Times on Thursday that the committee has now asked states and Union Territories for information about cases of attacks and harassment, and that its observations will be added its report.
The committee is expected to hold its second meeting on February 19, where these cases will be discussed, another senior official told the newspaper. “The committee will also consult constitutional experts, law enforcement agencies and cinema owners before releasing its report,” the official said.
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