The Karnataka government has issued an order limiting the rendition of Vande Mataram to its first two stanzas at state government programmes and official functions. The directive was issued following a decision by the Karnataka Cabinet and is intended to establish a uniform protocol for the national song at government events across the state.
According to the order, state government departments and organisers are required to sing or play only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram at programmes organised by the state government. However, the restriction does not apply to certain high level official events.
The full version of Vande Mataram will be rendered at programmes attended by the President of India, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister or the Governor of Karnataka. This exception has been specifically included in the state government order.
The Karnataka government said the decision was aimed at ensuring uniformity, dignity and appropriate protocol in the singing or playing of Vande Mataram at official programmes. The order also refers to the importance of the national song during India's freedom movement and its role in promoting nationalism, unity and patriotism.
The decision comes at a time when there is a wider political debate in the country over the rendition of Vande Mataram. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs had issued guidelines earlier this year regarding the official version of the national song and the protocol to be followed when it is sung or played at government and public functions.
The Centre's guidelines were issued during the observance of the 150th year of Vande Mataram. According to reports, the guidelines provide for the full six stanza version on specified ceremonial occasions. They also outline circumstances in which the national song is to be played or sung at official functions.
The Karnataka order has therefore attracted attention because of the difference between the state's approach to routine government programmes and the Centre's broader guidelines concerning the full version.
The decision is also connected to an ongoing political discussion involving the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Congress Working Committee had on August 19 reiterated its position based on a 1937 resolution, under which the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram are used at party events. The BJP has criticised the Congress position and has advocated the rendition of the complete version.
The issue has recently generated political debate in several parts of the country. Questions over which version should be sung at official events have become a subject of discussion between political parties, particularly after the Centre introduced its guidelines for the 150th anniversary of the song.
Vande Mataram has a significant place in India's history. The song, composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, became an important symbol during the freedom movement. Over the years, it has continued to be recognised as India's national song and is performed at various official and public occasions.
The Karnataka government order does not remove Vande Mataram from state government functions. Instead, it establishes a specific format for its rendition depending on the nature of the programme and the dignitaries attending it.
At ordinary state government programmes, the first two stanzas will be used. At programmes attended by the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister or Governor, the complete version will be rendered according to the exception included in the order.
The order is expected to provide departments and government institutions with a standard procedure to follow when organising official programmes. The Karnataka government has said that the objective is to avoid uncertainty regarding the appropriate version and protocol at different government functions.
The decision has also become part of the broader political debate over national symbols and their use at public events. The BJP and Congress have taken different positions on the rendition of Vande Mataram, with the issue increasingly becoming a point of political disagreement.
The debate has extended beyond Karnataka as well. In Gujarat, a separate controversy emerged after Congress MLA Imran Khedawala sat down during the rendition of additional stanzas of Vande Mataram in the state Assembly. Khedawala said he supported the version historically associated with the first two stanzas, while BJP leaders criticised his position.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the issue has also created differences between the Congress and its ally, the National Conference. National Conference leaders have defended the full rendition of Vande Mataram at government functions, while Congress leaders have reiterated their preference for the first two stanzas.
The developments indicate that the question of how Vande Mataram should be performed has become part of a wider national discussion about protocol, political tradition and national symbols.
For Karnataka, however, the immediate position is clear under the new state government order. Government departments and organisers must follow the specified format at state programmes, with the first two stanzas being used as the standard version for routine events.
The full version remains applicable to programmes attended by the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister or Governor. This distinction means that the format of the national song at a government event will depend on the nature of the programme and the constitutional dignitaries present.
The Karnataka government's decision is likely to remain a subject of political discussion because it comes amid disagreement between the Congress and BJP over the rendition of Vande Mataram. While the state government has described its order in terms of uniformity, dignity and protocol, the political context has added significance to the decision.
For now, the order provides a clear framework for state government functions in Karnataka. The first two stanzas will be used at routine state government programmes, while the full version will be retained for programmes attended by the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister or Governor.