New Delhi: all india muslim personal law board There was strong opposition on Thursday against the central government’s recent notification requiring recitation of all six verses of ‘Vande Mataram’ before playing the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ at official events and schools.AIMPLB called the decision “unconstitutional and contrary to religious freedom” and asked the government to withdraw the notification immediately or challenge it in court. Two factions of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, a prominent Muslim group, also raised objections to the government order.Meanwhile, left parties such as the CPI(M) and CPI have also come out against the home ministry’s order. The CPI(M) demanded that the government “uphold the spirit of the Constitution and revoke this order immediately”.The CPI(M) accused the BJP-led union government of trying to “create unnecessary controversy on the issue of national anthem and national anthem with ulterior motives” and that the “BJP government should not be allowed to play with such historical and cultural symbols”.The Left Party emphasized that “Article 51A(a) of the Indian Constitution clearly stipulates that every citizen has the obligation to respect the national flag and the national anthem. After full deliberation, the Constituent Assembly adopted President Rajendra Prasad’s statement on the national anthem. Only two verses of the national anthem can be sung.” “Through the recent order, the government has sought to incorporate the remaining four sections, which the Constituent Assembly considered incompatible with the secular character of the Republic of India,” the party added. Sandosh Kumar P, a member of the Communist Party of India’s Rajya Sabha, accused the government of “cynically weaponizing culture to polarize people”. “Our stance is clear: for us, the country comes first; for the BJP, elections come first,” he added.Talking about the ruling party at the Centre, he claimed that “it is highly ironic that those who played no role in the freedom struggle and remained subservient to British colonialism are now claiming the right to issue certificates of nationalism.”The Trinamool Congress party lashed out at the government, claiming the BJP was “Bengali-Birodi”. “Now, in an official notification, @HMOIndia has distorted the original lyrics of Vande Mataram composed by Rishi Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in Anandamath,” the party claimed in a post on X.Elaborating on the grounds of objection, AIMPLB general secretary Maulana Mohammed Fazlur Rahim Mujaddidi said the home ministry’s order was “unconstitutional, against religious freedom and secular values, contrary to Supreme Court judgments and in direct conflict with the religious beliefs of Muslims”.“Whatever the political considerations behind implementing this decision ahead of the West Bengal elections, it is unacceptable to Muslims as it directly conflicts with their faith,” he added.Maulana Mujadidi said that on the advice of Rabindranath Tagore and the deliberations of the Constituent Assembly, it was unanimously agreed to use only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram. “A secular government cannot impose the beliefs or teachings of one religion on followers of other religions,” he said.He added that the song was written in Bengali background and contains worship and worship of Durga and other deities.AIMPLB Secretary-General emphasized: “Muslims worship only Allah, the one God, and have no partners, and Islam does not allow any form of linking partners to God.”“The committee, therefore, requests the central government to immediately withdraw the notification; failing which, the committee will challenge it in court,” he maintained.Describing the government order as “biased”, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind chairman Maulana Arshad Madani claimed it was a “conspiracy to seize the religious freedom granted to all citizens by the Indian Constitution”.He further claimed that the central government’s order on Vande Mataram was a “unilateral coercive decision” which reflected a “systematic attempt to curtail the constitutional rights of minorities”.“Muslims do not prevent anyone from singing or playing ‘Vande Mataram’; however, some of the lyrics of the song are based on the belief of portraying the motherland as a deity, which contradicts the fundamental beliefs of monotheism. Since Muslims worship only one Allah, forcing him to sing this song is a clear violation of Article 25 of the Constitution and several judgments of the Supreme Court,” he added.In a statement by the Jamiat Ulama-i- Hind faction led by Maulana Mahmood Madani, its general secretary Maulana Hakimuddin Qasmi said: “If the majority group wishes to recite it, they have every right to do so. However, forcing all citizens to do so amounts to imposing restrictions on religious freedom,” he added.He said that the Constitution of India guarantees the inalienable right of every citizen to profess, practice and propagate his or her religion and to live in accordance with his or her own beliefs and conscience. “Therefore, forcing any individual to recite a specific poem or work that conflicts with his or her religious beliefs is contrary to the spirit and letter of the Constitution,” he said.He further said, “India is a pluralistic, multi-religious country, and the supremacy of the Constitution and the principle of ‘unity in diversity’ form the basis of national integration. Any step that weakens this basis is not in the national interest.”“Indian Muslims hold a unanimous and clear stand that any decision that compromises religious freedom will not be accepted. We strongly urge the Indian government to review the above notification in the light of constitutional provisions, judicial precedents and the country’s diverse social fabric so that religious freedom, constitutional dignity and social harmony are safeguarded,” he added.
