Vande Mataram Row: Patriotism or Political Policing?

The Vande Mataram controversy has once again become a political battlefield, this time after Gujarat Congress MLA Imran Khedawala sat down after the first two stanzas were sung in the Gujarat Assembly. The BJP has accused him of insulting the national song and has asked the Speaker to take action. Khedawala, however, says he stood for the version historically adopted by Congress in 1937 and sat down when the later stanzas were sung. He insists that his decision was personal and that he has nothing to apologise for.

The controversy is not simply about standing or sitting. It reflects a much deeper disagreement over patriotism, political identity and the meaning of national symbols. Congress has recently reaffirmed its position of using the first two stanzas at its events, while the BJP supports the complete rendition. The National Conference, meanwhile, has taken a different position from its Congress ally, calling the full version a constitutional duty at government functions in Jammu and Kashmir.

The BJP's criticism raises a legitimate question: if Vande Mataram represents India's freedom struggle and national identity, should elected representatives show respect when it is being performed in an official institution? But there is another equally important question: can patriotism be measured by a person's physical posture during a song? Turning every disagreement over a national symbol into a test of loyalty risks reducing patriotism to political performance. At the same time, political parties cannot selectively invoke history whenever it suits their present-day position.

The most worrying part is that a national song has once again become ammunition in the BJP–Congress political battle. Instead of discussing unemployment, education, economic pressure or governance, politicians are fighting over who is more patriotic. Respect for national symbols matters, but democracy also requires room for historical interpretation and political disagreement.

Is this really about respecting Vande Mataram—or are India's national symbols increasingly being used as weapons in electoral politics?