West Bengal makes Vande Mataram recital compulsory in all madrasas

The West Bengal government has made the recital of Vande Mataram mandatory in all madrasas across the state during morning assemblies, NDTV reports.

The order, issued by the Directorate of Madrasah on Wednesday, will apply to all recognised, aided and unaided institutions under the Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education Department of the West Bengal government.

Under the directive, students in madrasas will have to sing the national song before classes begin each day.

The move comes a week after the Suvendu Adhikari government made the singing of all six stanzas of Vande Mataram compulsory in schools across the state.

Students must sing the national song during morning assembly before the start of classes, according to the earlier order.

“Overriding the previous directive, the West Bengal government has made it mandatory with immediate effect for all schools under the Department of School Education to sing the Indian national song Vande Mataram during the school assembly or morning prayer before the commencement of classes,” NDTV quoted Chief Minister Suvendu as saying in an online post.

Vande Mataram, once used as a rallying cry during India’s anti-colonial movement, has returned to political debate ahead of this year’s state election.

In February, India’s central government granted the song a status equal to the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, making it compulsory for all six stanzas to be sung at government and school events alongside the anthem.

The issue has also triggered political controversy in recent weeks during oath-taking ceremonies in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

According to the Indian outlet, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), a political party in India, criticised Chief Minister Joseph Vijay after the full version of Vande Mataram was played before the national anthem at an event in Chennai.

In Kerala, Left parties targeted the VD Satheesan-led government after the complete song was performed during his oath ceremony.

While the United Democratic Front (UDF) government distanced itself from the matter by saying Raj Bhavan had decided the programme sequence, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused Communist parties of “hating” Indian culture.