President of India Droupadi Murmu gave her formal assent to the Vande Mataram Bill, granting the National Song the same legal protection currently available to the National Anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana.’
Political Context
Jana Gana Mana takes around 52 seconds, during which audiences are expected to stand respectfully and remain attentive, according to Tharoor. A full rendition of Vande Mataram, he said, takes about three minutes and 10 seconds. President Murmu Gives Assent To Bill Criminalising Insult To Vande Mataram President Murmu Gives Assent To Bill Criminalising Insult To Vande Mataram President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday gave assent to a Bill that criminalises intentional disruption or prevention of the singing of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’, giving it the same legal protection currently accorded to the national anthem, a government statement said With the president’s assent, The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, has become a law.
Tharoor said he respected both Vande Mataram and Jana Gana Mana, and that he could sing the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram, but not the remaining four. The Tamil state song, he said, adds another two minutes to the proceedings. For the first time at the Independence Day function, Vande Mataram will be sung from the ramparts of the Red Fort, the Union Home Ministry said.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has raised questions over the practical implications of making the full rendition of Vande Mataram mandatory at official functions. The Congress MP also questioned how much time audiences would be expected to stand during official programmes. He also referred to Tamil Nadu, where the state song is to be played before both the National Song and the National Anthem.
He noted that the additional stanzas had not previously been required at official events. In a social media post on Tuesday, Tharoor said the amendment was passed by Parliament without discussion and would now require the complete National Song to be sung at the beginning and end of official functions, alongside the National Anthem.
