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New Delhi, July 30: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, paving the way for granting the National Song, Vande Mataram, legal protection similar to that enjoyed by the National Anthem, Jana Gana Mana.
The Bill was cleared by a voice vote after a brief debate, despite repeated disruptions by Opposition members demanding answers from the government over alleged police excesses during protests against the NEET paper leak. The Rajya Sabha had already approved the legislation on Wednesday.
The proposed law seeks to make the intentional disruption or prevention of the singing of Vande Mataram a punishable offence once it receives Presidential assent.
The Bill sparked sharp exchanges in the House. The DMK opposed the legislation, alleging that it was being imposed without public consensus and could deepen social divisions. DMK MP Kanimozhi argued that the country's founders had deliberately adopted only the first two stanzas of the song and accused the Centre of using the legislation for political purposes. She also criticised the passage of the Bill amid the noisy proceedings, calling it undemocratic.
Defending the legislation, BJP MP Sambit Patra said Parliament had already held extensive discussions on Vande Mataram in the past and that the amendment merely provides it with long-awaited legal protection. He also criticised the Congress, saying that more than seven decades after Independence, the national song was still awaiting legal recognition.
Patra said the legislation would ensure that the National Song receives the same respect and reverence as the National Anthem.
Replying to the debate, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the Congress leadership under Jawaharlal Nehru had adopted a truncated version of Vande Mataram as part of its politics of appeasement. He described the amendment as a corrective step and said the national song is a symbol of national pride that would strengthen the vision of "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat."
The Bill will now be sent to the President for assent. Once notified as law, any deliberate act of insulting, disrupting, or preventing the singing ofVande Mataramwill attract legal action under the amended legislation.
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