NEW DELHI: Amid objections from the opposition, particularly the Left parties, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai on Friday introduced a Bill in the Rajya Sabha seeking to bring insults to or obstruction of the singing of the national song Vande Mataram within the ambit of criminal law.
The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026 seeks to amend the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, which makes desecration of or disrespect towards the country's national symbols -- including the national flag, the Constitution and the national anthem -- a criminal offence carrying a punishment of up to three years' imprisonment.
The proposed legislation seeks to give Vande Mataram the same statutory protection as the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. The move comes amid the year-long celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram.
The Statement of Objects and Reasons said that at the January 24, 1950 meeting of the Constituent Assembly, its President Rajendra Prasad stated that Vande Mataram, composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and which played a historic role in India's freedom struggle, shall have the same status as the national anthem.
Leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) John Brittas gave notice under Rule 67 objecting to the introduction of the Bill.
Strongly opposing the legislation, he said, "Parliament can't rewrite constitutional settlement to an ordinary legislation. The bill entirely lies upon Dr Rajendra Prasad's statement, but it suppresses the most important sentence. It suppresses the crucial constitutional context in which the statement was made... They cannot manufacture patriotism and nationalism through a piece of legislature. Their intention is to polarize the society."
Notices opposing the Bill were also submitted by AA Rahim, V Sivadasan (both CPM) and P Santhosh Kumar of the CPI.
Kumar said the Bill was introduced to distract public attention from the ongoing student movement against the NEET examination paper leak.
"The intention is very clear; this is to distract the public attention from the ongoing student agitation demanding Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. Vande Mataram should unite Indians. It should not divide us. The leaders of India's freedom movement, including Rabindranath Tagore, had understood this. That is why it was confined to two stanzas only.... These people had betrayed India's freedom movement, purposefully manufacturing a division between Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chatterjee," he said.
The Statement of Objects and Reasons said there is currently no specific legal provision to prevent insults to the singing of Vande Mataram.
"Presently, there is no specific legal provision to prevent insults to the singing of Vande Mataram, which is honoured as the National Song. Therefore, in order to prohibit any person from intentionally preventing the singing of the National Song (Vande Mataram) or causing disturbance to any assembly engaged in such singing, it is proposed to amend section 3 of the said Act to include the National Song also within its ambit, so as to make such acts punishable," it said.