President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday gave assent to the Vande Mataram Invoice, granting the Nationwide Track the identical authorized safety because the nationwide anthem.
The Parliament handed the Prevention of Insults to Nationwide Honour (Modification) Invoice, 2026, final month, amending the Prevention of Insults to Nationwide Honour Act, 1971. The laws seeks to present Vande Mataram the identical statutory safety because the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana.
With the president’s assent, the invoice has turn into a legislation. Now, such offences are punishable with imprisonment as much as three years, a tremendous, or each.
Earlier, the Prevention of Insults to Nationwide Honour Act prohibited deliberately stopping the singing of the nationwide anthem (Jana Gana Mana) or inflicting disturbance to any meeting engaged in such singing.
These offences had been punishable by as much as three years’ imprisonment, a tremendous, or each, whereas a second and each subsequent conviction attracted a minimal of 1 yr’s imprisonment. The erstwhile legislation didn’t accord the identical safety for the nationwide music.
“Presently, there isn’t a particular authorized provision to forestall insults to the singing of ‘Vande Mataram‘, which is honoured because the nationwide music. Due to this fact, to be able to prohibit any individual from deliberately stopping the singing of the nationwide music or inflicting disturbance to any meeting engaged in such singing, it’s proposed to amend Part 3 of the mentioned Act to incorporate the nationwide music additionally inside its ambit, in order to make such acts punishable,” the Invoice had mentioned.
The president of the Constituent Meeting, Dr Rajendra Prasad, on January 24, 1950, said that the music ‘Vande Mataram’ composed by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, which performed a historic function within the Indian freedom battle, shall be honoured equally with the nationwide anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ and shall have equal standing with it, the Invoice additional mentioned.
House ministry’s Vande Mataram order
The Union home ministry mentioned on Monday that for the primary time on the Independence Day operate, Vande Mataram might be sung from the ramparts of the Purple Fort this yr.
Earlier this yr, the Union House Ministry directed that each one six stanzas of ‘Vande Mataram’ shall be sung first when the nationwide music and the nationwide anthem are performed collectively.
In an order dated January 28, the house ministry gave the primary set of protocols for singing the nationwide music, directing that six stanzas of it, having a length of three minutes and 10 seconds, shall be sung at official capabilities such because the arrival of the president, unfurling of the nationwide flag, and speeches of governors.
“When the nationwide music and the nationwide anthem are sung or performed, the nationwide music might be sung or performed first,” the order learn.
The meeting the place the nationwide music is sung shall stand in consideration, it mentioned.
The order, which carried a number of directives, mentioned that in all faculties, the day’s work shall start with group singing of the nationwide music.
