Vande Mataram Row: Karnataka Governor Urges Reconsideration of Two-Stanza Order
A political showdown continues in the Karnataka Assembly over the rendition of the national song, Vande Mataram. The ruling Congress government maintains that only the first two stanzas should be sung to uphold secular values and historical practice, while the BJP insists on singing all eleven stanzas. Amid this impasse, Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot has written to Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, advising the state government to reconsider its decision restricting the rendition. Gehlot cited central government guidelines and a recent parliamentary Amendment Act granting statutory authority to the national song on par with the national anthem, calling on the state to revoke its order.
