Karnataka: BJP MLAs sing full Vande Mataram in Assembly, defy two-stanza order

Bengaluru: BJP MLAs in the Karnataka Assembly on Monday sang all six stanzas of Vande Mataram after the House completed the first two, defying the state government’s recent order that mandated only a customary rendition of two stanzas.

The BJP lawmakers remained standing at their seats and continued with the full song even as the Assembly proceeded with its listed business.

The move comes amid a dispute over the government’s September 8 order mandating the singing of the first two stanzas at state government events except when the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister or Governor is present. The Karnataka High Court is also seized of a PIL challenging the notification.


The petitioner argued that the state government lacks the executive authority to prescribe the version of the national song and that its order conflicts with a July 9 directive from the Union government calling for the official version at occasions where Vande Mataram is sung.

The BJP, in a post on X, accused the Congress government of restricting the national song and said it would oppose the move. The party also criticised police action at a Ganeshotsava event in Uppinangady, Dakshina Kannada district, where participants allegedly sang the full version.

The dispute follows a decision by the Congress Working Committee in August to limit the rendition of Vande Mataram at party programmes to its first two stanzas, citing a 1937 resolution and the historical debate surrounding the song.