Whose Song Is It Anyway?

Vande Mataram, the national song, has been a bone of contention for decades now. A battle cry for Indian independence, it compares certain qualities of the motherland with that of Goddess Durga and Lakshmi in the later paragraphs.

The national song has been a bone of contention for decades now. A battle cry for Indian independence, it compares certain qualities of the motherland with that of Goddess Durga and Lakshmi in the later paragraphs.

In one way or another, all art is political. And any visible shift in the social and political discourse of the times has artists at the forefront. But what is a little puzzling is how a song which was meant to be an enchanting elegy to a writer’s physical setting, acquires a sinister political edge.

In a recent decision by the new Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Kamal Nath, at 10:45 am on the first working day of every month, “a police band will play the tunes that encourage patriotic feelings during their march from Shaurya Smarak to Vallabh Bhawan in Bhopal. On arrival at the Bhawan, the national anthem and Vande Mataram will be sung.” This has come only days after Nath ordered that it was no longer mandatory to sing the Vande Mataram in the Secretariat, a practice that was started by three-time former Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The order had provoked protests from Chouhan and the Opposition, with many BJP members criticising the decision to not sing the national song.

The national song has been a bone of contention for decades now. A battle cry for Indian independence, it compares certain qualities of the motherland with that of Goddess Durga and Lakshmi in the later paragraphs.

A few months ago, BJP President Amit Shah had accused the Congress of appeasing Muslims by retaining only two paragraphs of the song and not including the latter ones (with mentions of Durga and Lakshmi) during the freedom movement. In 2017, it caused a rift between BJP members of the Meerut municipality and Muslim councillors. The latter walked out during a session of the Meerut Municipal Corporation when the piece was sung. When the seven Muslim councillors returned, they weren’t allowed back in. The cries of “Hindustan mein rehna hai to Vande Mataram kehna hai” were heard.