Karnataka Home Minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge has defended the state government’s decision to limit Vande Mataram to two stanzas at official events, escalating the row over the BJP’s demand that all stanzas of the national song be sung.
The Congress leader also targeted the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the row.
“…If they do, I will resign,” he said.
Earlier on Tuesday, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed before the Karnataka High Court challenging the state government’s order directing that only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram be sung at state government programmes. The directive was issued as the Centre marked the 150th year of Vande Mataram. The opposition BJP in Karnataka had lashed out at the Congress government, terming the decision “appeasement politics.
However, the Congress Working Committee decided on August 19 to abide by its 1937 resolution on Vande Mataram, under which only two stanzas of the national song would be sung at party events.
The plea, filed by advocate Girish Bharadwaj, said that the directive runs contrary to instructions issued by the Union government. The Ministry of Home Affairs, through a letter dated July 9, 2026, circulated the orders relating to the national song to all states for “strict compliance”, according to the petition. The petitioner said that the Union government’s directions prescribe the official version of Vande Mataram as the complete composition in six stanzas and require the official version to be recited during mass singing.
In January, the Union Home Ministry directed that all six stanzas of Vande Mataram be sung before the National Anthem – Jana Gana Mana – when both are played together.
