Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath on Monday announced that singing Vande Mataram will be made compulsory in schools and educational institutions in the state.
Vande Mataram was written in Sanskrit by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1875 and is a popular patriotic song from India’s freedom movement.
Speaking at an Ekta Yatra or Unity March and a community recitation of Vande Mataram in Gorakhpur to mark the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Adityanath said the move would inspire “reverence and pride” among citizens towards Bharat Mata and the country, The Indian Express reported.
Bharat Mata is a personification of India as a mother goddess. The iconography is widely used by Hindu nationalists and is frequently criticised for propagating a Hindu-centric image of nationhood.
“There should be a sense of respect for the national song Vande Mataram,” Adityanath said. “We will make its singing compulsory in every school and educational institution of Uttar Pradesh.”
Adityanath’s remarks came amid a Union government campaign marking 150 years of Vande Mataram. The campaign, which runs until Constitution Day on November 26, includes nationwide recitations and cultural events.
On Monday, Adityanath also said that any opposition to Vande Mataram is part of a “conspiracy to create new Jinnahs”.
Mohammad Ali Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the establishment of Pakistan on 14 August, 1947. He was Pakistan’s first governor-general until he died in 1948.
Adityanath’s comments appeared to be directed at Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia-ur-Rehman Barq, who had said on Sunday that he had never sung the national song and that doing so cannot be made a test of patriotism.
The MP had said that no one can force Muslims to sing the national song as some words in it are against the preachings of Islam, The Indian Express reported.
“We must ensure that no new Jinnah is born in India,” Adityanath said on Monday. “If attempts are made to revive Jinnah then such attempts should be buried.”
The chief minister added that faith was secondary to the country’s unity.
“While our faith is on one side, if it becomes a hurdle in the unity and harmony of the country, then it would have to be sidelined,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.
The BJP has repeatedly invoked Vande Mataram as part of its Hindutva messaging. Over the years, the party’s calls for mandatory recitation of the song in schools and government offices have been met with resistance from sections of society that view it as an exclusionary practice, particularly for minorities.
A Press Information Bureau note issued on November 6 to mark 150 years of Vande Mataram stated that the Constituent Assembly had adopted Jana Gana Mana as the national anthem and Vande Mataram as the national song.
The note quoted Rajendra Prasad, the first president, as having told the Assembly in January 1950 that Vande Mataram, because of its role in the freedom movement, “shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it”.
However, the Constitution mentions only the national anthem, not Vande Mataram.
You’ve read Scroll.
Now help sustain it
Scroll is funded by readers, not corporate owners. If you believe our work matters, support our newsroom. Become a member today!
We’re not driven by clicks or corporate interests – just honest, independent reporting. Keep us going. Support Scroll today!