Plea in Karnataka HC against singing entire Vande Mataram in schools including references to Hindu deities

A lawyer has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) petition before the Karnataka High Court questioning the Central government's recent instruction for all schools to start their day by singing all six stanzas of the national song, Vande Mataram, including stanzas that refer to Hindu deities.

The petitioner maintained that he does not dispute the patriotic character of the first two stanzas of the song. This truncated version of the song was usually sung as the national song until the Central government last month issued a protocol advisory prescribing all six stanzas of the original rendition as the national song.

However, the petitioner has questioned the mandate to schools to sing the four additional stanzas of the song which refer to Hindu deities.

In particular, the petitioner has submitted that stanza 5 of the song now prescribed as the official version by the Centre, expressly invokes Hindu goddesses Durga, Kamala (Lakshmi) and Vani (Saraswati) by name.

A Bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice CM Poonacha briefly heard the matter on Thursday, when Additional Solicitor General Aravind Kamath told the Court that the Supreme Court had yesterday dismissed a similar plea.

When the Bench sought to view the Supreme Court's order, it was told that the order copy has not yet been uploaded.

In view of this, the High Court decided to adjourn the case till April 9.

The petitioner, advocate Somashekhar Rajavamshi, has argued that the Centre's recent advisory effectively compels children in State funded schools to participate in the daily singing of devotional songs.

This, he contends, violates Articles 25-28 (freedom of conscience, prohibition of religious instruction in State-funded institutions) and Article 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution, as well as the secular basic structure of the Constitution.

It also departs from the constitutional vision reflected in Constituent Assembly Debates as well as Dr. BR Ambedkar’s emphasis in his November 1949 valedictory address on fraternity and an inclusive non-sectarian republic, the petitioner has contended.

The plea goes on to argue that the government cannot introduce a religiously loaded version of the national song on all citizens and school-going children by executive fiat as it violates the Constitutional scheme.

During today's hearing, Rajavamshi submitted that the truncated version of Vande Mataram (with only its first two stanzas) was chosen to unite all people during the freedom struggle. The recent protocol advisory is now seeking to introduce stanzas that are religious in nature, he added.

He has, therefore, sought a declaration from the Court that the Centre's February protocol notification is unconstitutional in so far as it prescribes stanzas 3-6 of the Vande Mataram as part of the official version and mandates its daily rendition in schools.

The petitioner has called for directions so that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs revise the said notification to confine the official version of the national song to the first two stanzas of the Vande Mataram. Only these stanzas should be sung at schools, the petitioner has submitted.

The petitioner has also urged the Court to consider directing the National Commission for Minorities and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights to examine and report on the impact of the Centre's February directive on children of minority faiths or children part of non-religious families.