Vande Mataram Gets Same Legal Protection as National Anthem

• 12 Aug 2026

On 6th August 2026, President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, making it law and extending legal protection to the national song Vande Mataram on the same lines as the national anthem.

Key Points

• Legal Protection: The amendment criminalises the intentional prevention of the singing of Vande Mataram or causing disturbance to an assembly engaged in its singing.
• Penalty: Intentional prevention or disruption of the singing of the national song or national anthem can attract imprisonment of up to three years, a fine, or both.
• A second or subsequent conviction carries a minimum imprisonment of one year.
• Vande Mataram Protocol: The Union Home Ministry directed that when the national song and national anthem are sung or played together, Vande Mataram will be performed first.