New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday declined to go into the debate on whether Vande Mataram should be declared a national song, saying there is no such concept as a “national song”.
The court, however, said it will consider the plea to frame a policy to promote the national anthem and the national flag as laid down in Article 51A of the Constitution.
A three-judge bench of Justices Dipak Misra, R. Banumathi and Mohan M. Shantanagouda gave an order on a petition filed by Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay for a direction to frame a policy on the national anthem, flag and the song Vande Mataram.
Earlier, senior counsel Vikas Singh said that since the petition is similar to an earlier one pending in the court, it must be heard together.
“We do not find that the present writ petition relates in entirety to national policy, for our earlier order does not relate to national song or national flag,” the bench said.
It quoted Article 51A(a) of the Constitution which refers only to the national flag and the national anthem, adding that it did not want to go into the debate.
In the last hearing, attorney general Mukul Rohatgi had submitted that singing of national anthem should be made mandatory in schools.
The bench said the plea on singing of national anthem in schools is relevant, and told the petitioner to give a copy of the writ petition to the attorney general.
The apex court had on November 30 last year ordered cinema halls across the nation to mandatorily play the national anthem before screening of a movie when the audience must stand and show respect.
