Kohima: The Supreme Court of India ruled that citizens who refuse to sing Vande Mataram cannot face punishment. A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and including Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana heard the petition. The case came from Carnatic vocalist T M Krishna. He challenged laws requiring the singing of all six stanzas of the song.
Krishna argued that the final four stanzas hurt the nation's secular identity. The court did not issue a formal notice to the Centre. Instead, it instructed the government to follow the 1986 precedent set in Bijoe Emmanuel versus State of Kerala. That ruling protected children who declined to sing the national anthem for personal, conscientious reasons.
Justice Bagchi addressed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta directly during the proceedings. He insisted the established law must govern any amended acts. "Nobody who feels an infraction of Article 25 and 26 rights or a conscientious objector would be subjected to penal consequences," Justice Bagchi stated. The court left it to the state to decide the song's official length, but maintained that personal freedom remains the priority.
Comments