The Karnataka state Congress government has issued an order governing the singing of Vande Mataram at state government programs and functions. The order, dated September 8, 2026, refers to guidelines issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and acknowledges the historic role of Vande Mataram in inspiring nationalism, unity, and patriotism during Bharat’s freedom movement. Yet, instead of giving the national song a more prominent place in official functions, the Congress-led state government has chosen to restrict its use.
As per the News Minute reports, the government’s own order recognizes that Vande Mataram played an important role in creating nationalism, unity, and patriotic feeling among Bharatiyas during the national movement. It also notes that the Union Home Ministry has laid down guidelines concerning the official version of the song and the circumstances in which it may be played or sung at government and public functions. Despite acknowledging this significance, the Karnataka government has introduced a restrictive framework for its own programs, raising the obvious question of why a song so deeply associated with Bharat’s national struggle should be treated with such caution by a state government.
According to the order, the Karnataka government has decided that, except for programs attended by the president, vice president, prime minister, or governor, only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram are to be sung at state government programs. The order states that the decision is intended to ensure uniformity, dignity, and appropriate protocol in accordance with the nature and context of government functions. But whether such bureaucratic restrictions are really necessary when dealing with a song that has been an enduring symbol of Bharat’s freedom struggle and national consciousness.
The political irony is difficult to ignore. A Congress government is now issuing detailed instructions governing how Vande Mataram should be performed at government functions, despite the song’s historic association with Bharat’s freedom movement. At a time when national unity and patriotic sentiment should ideally transcend party politics, the Karnataka government should explain why greater respect and prominence cannot be afforded to one of the country’s most important national songs. Instead of strengthening the place of national symbols in public life, the government’s approach risks creating the impression that patriotism itself is being subjected to political and administrative calculations.
Why is ‘Vande Mataram’ still treated differently?
Vande Mataram is not merely a song that appeared in Bharat’s literary history; it became one of the most powerful expressions of anti-colonial nationalism. From the Swadeshi movement and the struggle against the Partition of Bengal to its use by freedom fighters, the song became a rallying cry against British rule. Its history is inseparable from Bharat’s freedom struggle, and the fact that colonial authorities attempted to suppress its public chanting only underlines the political power it acquired. Its eventual recognition as Bharat’s National Song, alongside Jana Gana Mana, reflects its historical importance. To reduce Vande Mataram to a routine cultural performance, or to treat expressions of respect for it as somehow politically suspect, is therefore to overlook a significant part of Bharat’s national history.
What is increasingly troubling, however, is the politicization of the song in the name of secularism. Congress and its supporters have repeatedly found themselves caught between acknowledging Vande Mataram‘s place in the freedom movement and avoiding anything that could be portrayed as uncomfortable to sections of the Islamic electorate. The party’s approach amounts to vote-bank politics masquerading as secularism: rather than allowing a national symbol to occupy its legitimate historical and cultural space, the party appears reluctant to embrace it fully for fear of alienating particular communities. Bharat’s national identity cannot be reduced to a negotiation between political parties and vote banks. Respecting Vande Mataram does not require disrespecting any religion; likewise, questioning its use should not be an excuse to rewrite the history of Bharat’s freedom struggle.
People living in Bharat should ask themselves a fundamental question: how can anyone living in this country remain reluctant to stand in respect for the national anthem or openly oppose national symbols such as Jana Gana Mana and Vande Mataram? Freedom of expression is a fundamental right, but it should not be misused as a shield for deliberate contempt toward the nation and its symbols. Congress is doing dirty bootlicking politics for Islamists. Congress is never going to learn from this, and this is definitely going to backfire.
The national anthem belongs to every Bharatiya; it belongs to Bharat, not to any political party, religion, community, or vote bank. Jana Gana Mana is a symbol of our shared identity, unity, and sovereignty. Respecting it should never be reduced to a question of political convenience or communal appeasement. Whatever our differences, the nation must always come first.
