Archive · 16 Sep 2026
Karnataka Vande Mataram Row Escalates Over Two-Stanza Limit
Karnataka officials want only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram sung at state events.
Priyank Kharge defended that decision.
He challenged two BJP leaders to sing every stanza without reading from a paper.
Kharge said he would resign if they could do it.
The BJP criticized the state government’s decision.
The Union Home Ministry has instructed that all six stanzas be sung before Jana Gana Mana when both songs are played together.
The Congress Working Committee says it will follow an older resolution allowing two stanzas at party events.
A petitioner has asked the Karnataka High Court to cancel the state order because it allegedly conflicts with Union instructions.
Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge defended limiting Vande Mataram to its first two stanzas at official state events.
Kharge challenged BJP leaders B Y Vijayendra and R Ashoka to sing all stanzas without a teleprompter or written lyrics, saying he would resign if they did.
The Union Home Ministry directed that all six stanzas be sung before Jana Gana Mana when both songs are played together.
The Congress Working Committee chose to follow its 1937 resolution permitting two stanzas at party events, while the BJP called Karnataka’s decision appeasement politics.
A petition filed in the Karnataka High Court argues that the state order conflicts with Union government instructions and should be quashed.
- Who
- Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge, the Karnataka government, the Bharatiya Janata Party, and petitioner Girish Bharadwaj are central to the dispute.
- What
- A dispute concerns whether two or all six stanzas of Vande Mataram should be sung at official programmes and other events.
- When
- The report cites a January Union directive, a Congress Working Committee decision on August 19, and a Union letter dated July 9, 2026; the petition was filed earlier on Tuesday.
- Where
- The dispute concerns Karnataka government programmes and is being challenged before the Karnataka High Court.
- Why
- The Karnataka government and the Congress rely on a 1937 resolution limiting the song to two stanzas, while the Union government and the petitioner support use of the complete six-stanza version.
Karnataka Government and Congress
Bharatiya Janata Party and Petitioner
Number of stanzas
Karnataka Government and Congress
The Karnataka government and Congress support singing only the first two stanzas, citing the Congress Working Committee’s adherence to its 1937 resolution.
Bharatiya Janata Party and Petitioner
The Bharatiya Janata Party and the petitioner support singing all six stanzas in line with Union government instructions.
Authority and tradition
Karnataka Government and Congress
Priyank Kharge argued that earlier national leaders and the 1937 decision established the two-stanza practice.
Bharatiya Janata Party and Petitioner
The petitioner argues that Karnataka’s order conflicts with the Union government’s prescribed complete version and instructions circulated to states.
Political interpretation
Karnataka Government and Congress
Kharge questioned whether the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were asserting greater authority than historical national leaders over the song’s use.
Bharatiya Janata Party and Petitioner
The Bharatiya Janata Party characterized the state government’s decision as appeasement politics.
- State position
- Karnataka directs that only the first two stanzas be sung at state government programmes.
- Priyank Kharge’s challenge
- He challenged B Y Vijayendra and R Ashoka to sing all stanzas without a teleprompter or written lyrics.
- Resignation pledge
- Kharge said he would resign if the BJP leaders completed the challenge.
- Union instruction
- The Union Home Ministry directed that all six stanzas be sung before Jana Gana Mana when both are played together.
- Congress resolution
- The Congress Working Committee decided on August 19 to follow its 1937 resolution allowing two stanzas at party events.
- Legal challenge
- Advocate Girish Bharadwaj filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Karnataka High Court seeking to quash the state order.
- BJP criticism
- The Bharatiya Janata Party described the Karnataka government’s decision as appeasement politics.