Delhi HC dismisses plea seeking national anthem status to Vande Mataram

New Delhi: The the Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed plea seeking equal status to Vande Mataram as national anthem.

The plea was filed by BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, seeking that Vande Mataram be given the same respect as the national anthem Jana Gana Mana.

Upadhyay in his petition had also sought that the central government should be directed to frame a national policy to promote and propagate both the national anthem and the national song. He also sought the court to direct the government to make sure that both the songs are sung in all schools.

A Similar petition was filed in the Delhi High Court  in October 2017, seeking that the national song should be treated at par with the national anthem. However, the court had dismissed the petition after the central government opposed the plea stating that Vande Mataram occupies a "unique and special place" in the psyche of Indians. However it cannot be treated at par with 'Jana Gana Mana'.

While national song Vande Mataram was written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, national anthem Jana Gana Mana was penned by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.

Vande Mataram first came to be known in the form of a poem composed by Chattopadhyay in 1870’s which was later included in the author's 1881 novel "Anandamath". several verses of the song were adopted as the National Song in early 20th century and the same later became a popular marching song for political activists and crusaders of India’s freedom movement.