Maharashtra Legislature Recites Full ‘Vande Mataram’

‘Vande Mataram’ was recited twice in the Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad. Traditionally, only the first two stanzas are recited, but presiding officers in both the Houses emphasized that the special occasion of 150 years of its composition merited the full rendition of the national song.

The proceedings in both the Houses of the State Legislature – Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad – began with the customary recital of the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram, followed by ‘Jai Jai Maharashtra Majha,’ the official state song.

Vidhan Sabha speaker Rahul Narwekar and Vidhan Parishad chairperson Ram Shinde said, “It is a tradition of the legislature to recite the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram on the first day of every session. However, as this year marks 150 years since its composition, the House will recite the entire song.” Members of both the Houses then recited the full song.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule and members of the ruling and opposition parties were present in both the Houses.

The move comes on the day the Lok Sabha was holding a discussion on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram. The debate in Parliament is part of the year-long celebrations on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, a poem written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and set to tune by Jadunath Bhattacharya.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized the Congress accusing the grand old party for the past omissions of key stanzas from the song in 1937, linking them to divisive historical events and sowing the seeds of partition. He announced year-long celebrations to deepen understanding of 'Vande Mataram', particularly among youth.