Karnataka High Court Declines to Intervene in 'Vande Mataram' Advisory Dispute
BENGALURU – The Karnataka High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought to challenge a recent Union Government advisory suggesting that schools across the country perform all six stanzas of the national song, Vande Mataram.
The Division Bench, led by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice CM Poonacha, ruled that the court was not inclined to entertain the petition, primarily because the government’s instruction is suggestive rather than mandatory.
The Core Conflict
The petition was filed following a February 2026 protocol notification from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Traditionally, only the first two stanzas of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s poem—which focus on the personification of the motherland—are sung as the National Song.
The new advisory encourages the inclusion of the remaining four stanzas. The petitioner argued that these additional verses:
- Contain Religious References: Specifically naming Hindu deities such as Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati.
- Violate Secular Mandates: Alleged that performing these in state-funded schools contravenes Articles 25–28 of the Constitution, which prohibit religious instruction in government institutions.
The Court’s Ruling
In dismissing the plea, the Bench highlighted two critical points:
- Language of the Advisory: The court noted that the MHA used the word "may" rather than "shall," signifying that schools have the discretion to choose whether or not to implement the full version.
- No Statutory Mandate: Unlike the National Anthem (Jana Gana Mana), which is governed by specific legal protocols, the National Song does not carry a statutory requirement for performance.
"Concededly, the national song is not covered under any statutory framework. The performance of the national song is not mandatory unlike the national anthem," the Court observed.
Previous Precedents
The Additional Solicitor General (ASG) also informed the court that a similar challenge had recently been dismissed by the Supreme Court of India, reinforcing the stance that the judiciary should not micromanage voluntary patriotic expressions.
The High Court concluded that since there is no legal compulsion for students or institutions to sing the extended version, there was no ground for a constitutional violation.
Discription: The Karnataka High Court recently dismissed a PIL challenging a 2026 Central Government advisory that encourages schools to sing all six stanzas of Vande Mataram. The petitioner argued that the final four stanzas, which invoke Hindu deities, violate the secular character of state-funded education under Articles 25–28 of the Constitution.
However, the Court, led by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru, emphasized that the advisory uses the word "may," rendering it recommendatory rather than a legal mandate. Unlike the National Anthem, the National Song lacks a statutory framework for compulsory performance. By affirming that no student is forced to participate, the Court avoided a deeper constitutional conflict, citing judicial economy and similar dismissals by the Supreme Court to justify its refusal to intervene.
