Asaduddin Owaisi, president of the AIMIM, has voiced strong opposition to the Union Cabinet’s decision to grant ‘Vande Mataram’ the same statutory protection as the national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana’. He argued that the song cannot be placed on an equal footing with the anthem because it is fundamentally an ode to a goddess, whereas the nation itself does not belong to, nor is it governed in the name of, any specific deity.
In a series of remarks shared on X, Owaisi emphasised that while ‘Jana Gana Mana’ celebrates the diversity of India and its people, ‘Vande Mataram’ carries a religious weight that is at odds with the secular nature of the state. He claimed that the song’s author held views sympathetic to the British Raj and was antagonistic towards Muslims, noting that figures such as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Rabindranath Tagore had all expressed reservations about it.
Owaisi pointed to the framing of the Constitution to support his stance, noting that the Preamble begins with "We, the People" rather than invoking "Bharat Maa". He reminded the public that during the Constituent Assembly debates, various amendments seeking to begin the Preamble in the name of a goddess or God were explicitly defeated. According to Owaisi, Article 1 defines India as a Union of States, reinforcing the idea that the nation is its people, not a religious entity.
However, the Telangana BJP president, N Ramchander Rao, has hit back at these objections, accusing the AIMIM leadership of viewing cultural integration as a threat to their brand of religious exclusivism. The BJP leader pointed out that the similarity between Owaisi and Jinnah could be seen when Jinnah started his campaign against the song only when he started moving away politically from the Congress Party.
According to the BJP leader, such an opposition has become a routine affair, especially with the AIMIM party’s refusal to accept the Uniform Civil Code and the abolition of Triple Talaq. Such opposition, according to him, is motivated by fear of losing political influence if there were national unity.
It came on the heels of the Union Cabinet’s decision to amend the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act of 1971, which included a provision criminalising the hindrance in the singing of ‘Vande Mataram.’ In essence, the national song has gained legal status equivalent to that of the national anthem.
Also read: AIMIM cuts ties with Humayun Kabir over ‘sting video’ row
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