Congress Will Sing Only Two Stanzas Of Vande Mataram — Here’s Why

The Congress has decided to continue singing only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram at party programmes, a position that is not in line with the Centre’s current protocol for designated official functions, which provides for the rendition of all six stanzas.

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) reaffirmed the practice on Wednesday after the BJP questioned the rendition of the National Song at the party’s Independence Day programme and later at an event in Goa. The party says it is following a 1937 CWC decision reached during the freedom movement, rather than adopting a new position.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday called the CWC decision “anti-national” and accused the Congress of reviving “appeasement politics”.

What Has Congress Decided?

The CWC has decided that only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram will be sung at Congress programmes.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has defended the practice by invoking the position taken by leaders of the freedom movement.

“If that is the crime, then file a case against Gandhiji, Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel,” Kharge said while responding to the BJP’s criticism. “I did what has been happening for the last 80 years.”

The party has cited its October 1937 resolution, which recommended that when Vande Mataram was sung at national gatherings, its first two stanzas should be used.

That makes the current CWC decision a reaffirmation of an old Congress position. It does, however, differ from the Union government’s January 2026 protocol, under which the official version for specified government ceremonies contains all six stanzas and runs for about three minutes and 10 seconds.

Why Does Congress Use Only Two Stanzas?

The opening two stanzas principally praise the motherland through descriptions of its water, fertility, greenery and natural beauty. The later portions introduce more explicit religious imagery. They invoke the motherland through Hindu deities including Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati and contain references to armed defenders of the mother.

These passages historically drew objections from sections of Muslim leadership and scholars, who argued that treating the motherland as a goddess conflicted with Islamic monotheism.

There was another source of controversy: Vande Mataram appeared in Chattopadhyay’s novel Anandamath, whose setting and depiction of conflict also became part of the debate over whether the complete composition could serve as an inclusive national song.

Congress maintains that retaining the first two stanzas follows the compromise reached over those objections during the freedom struggle.

The History Behind The Two-Stanza Formula

Chattopadhyay composed Vande Mataram in Sanskritised Bengali in the 19th century and incorporated it into Anandamath. The song later became closely associated with the nationalist movement, particularly during the agitation against the 1905 Partition of Bengal.

By 1937, however, its use had become politically contentious.

Jawaharlal Nehru, writing to Subhas Chandra Bose, acknowledged that the Anandamath background could cause apprehension among Muslims, although he also argued that much of the campaign against Vande Mataram was being driven by communal politics.

Nehru and Bose sought Rabindranath Tagore’s opinion. Tagore distinguished the first two stanzas from the complete poem. He said the full composition, when considered alongside Anandamath, could “wound Moslem susceptibilities”, while the opening verses had acquired “a separate individuality and an inspiring significance of its own”.

The CWC subsequently recommended in October 1937 that only the first two stanzas be sung at national gatherings.

Mahatma Gandhi also defended Vande Mataram as an important symbol of the freedom struggle while opposing its forced use where it could cause communal conflict. Writing in Harijan in 1939, he described it as a powerful rallying cry during the anti-partition movement in Bengal but said he would not “risk a single quarrel” over its rendition at a mixed gathering.

After Independence, Constituent Assembly President Rajendra Prasad said on January 24, 1950, that Vande Mataram, which had played a historic role in the freedom movement, would be “honoured equally” with Jana Gana Mana and accorded equal status. The Constituent Assembly did not pass a separate resolution specifying the number of stanzas to be sung.

For decades, the shorter rendition remained widely used. The government itself said in March that Akashvani had broadcast a two-stanza, 65-second version since Independence before shifting to the six-stanza version in 2026.

What Has Changed Now?

The immediate context is the Centre’s decision to formalise a six-stanza rendition.

The Ministry of Home Affairs issued fresh guidelines on January 28, 2026, specifying a six-stanza official version lasting approximately three minutes and 10 seconds. Government material says it is mandatory at specified major state occasions.

Parliament has also amended the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, extending to Vande Mataram legal protection similar to that provided to the National Anthem.

The amended law makes it an offence to intentionally prevent the singing of the National Song or disturb an assembly engaged in singing it, with punishment extending to three years in prison, a fine or both.

The law, however, is distinct from the dispute over how many stanzas Congress sings at its own programmes. Its text penalises intentional prevention or disruption; it does not state that political parties must sing all six stanzas at every event.

Why Are Congress And BJP Fighting Over It Again?

The BJP argues that the Congress should abandon the 1937 formula now that the Centre has adopted the complete composition for designated official events.

Shah accused the Congress of having divided Vande Mataram in 1937 for “Muslim appeasement” and claimed the decision contributed to the politics that preceded Partition.

“Yesterday, the Congress Working Committee took an anti-national decision,” Shah said, adding that the BJP would oppose the move publicly and in legislatures.

The Congress rejects that reading of history. KC Venugopal has argued that the party has followed the 1937 position for decades and accused the BJP of politicising a song that was closely associated with the freedom struggle.

The current dispute, therefore, centres on two positions. Congress says its two-stanza rendition follows a historical compromise reached during the national movement; the BJP says the compromise should no longer determine how the National Song is rendered.