Karnataka's two-member 'Vande Mataram' order challenged in High Court

A fresh legal battle over the payment of 'Vande Mataram' has reached the Karnataka High Court. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has challenged the state government's decision to restrict the playing of the national anthem to only the first two stanzas at official events. The petition states that the Karnataka government cannot change the protocol set by the central government through an executive order.
The PIL has been filed by Advocate Girish Bhardwaj through Advocate Angad Kamath. It raises the question whether a state government can determine the form and content of a national symbol. The petition demanded that whenever 'Vande Mataram' is sung in state functions, it should be rendered as per the official version prescribed by the central government. The matter is expected to be taken up for listing in the High Court on Tuesday.
This challenge is against the order issued by the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (Political) on September 8. The order was issued after a cabinet decision on September 3. It mandates the singing of only the first two stanzas of 'Vande Mataram' at state government events, but exempts events attended by the President, Vice President, Prime Minister or Governor. The petitioner has argued that the state government's order is in direct violation of the central government's directives on the national anthem. In a letter sent to states on July 9, the home ministry had directed states to pay for the official version of the national anthem whenever it is sung during mass singing. The PIL also raised a broader question of the federal structure. The petition states that the State List or Common List of the Seventh Constitutional Schedule does not include the subject of National Anthem, therefore it falls under the remaining legislative powers of the Parliament under Entry 97 of the Central List read with Article 248 of the Constitution. The petitioner said that "what the State Legislature cannot do by law, the State Government cannot do by Executive Order." The petition also referred to Articles 256 and 257 of the Constitution and said that the administrative action of the state government cannot be against the authority of the central government. The petitioner further cited the Prevention of Defamation of National Honor (Amendment) Act, 2026 and said that the Parliament has given legal protection to the national anthem and consequently the state version in the official version prescribed by the central government. Government cannot change.
The PIL has also challenged the procedure adopted by the Karnataka Cabinet. The petitioner alleged that the decision was taken as an "informal discussion" in the 19th Cabinet meeting, while there was no Cabinet note from the concerned department or the opinion of the Law Department. In the petition, it is said to be in violation of the Government of Karnataka (Conduct of Business) Rules, 1977.
The petitioner has distinguished the present challenge from earlier cases related to 'Vande Mataram'. He said that the present case is not about forcing individuals to sing the national anthem, but whether the state government can prescribe a different version allegedly against the central protocol.
The petition also referred to Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. It said that the singing of the National Anthem as prescribed by the Central Government falls under the constitutional protection of expression and an executive order cannot prohibit such expression under Article 19(2).
Thus, the case will not limit the Karnataka government's two-clause order to the issue of 'Vande Mataram' but may also bring to the fore the broader question of the limits of the state government's administrative powers vis-à-vis the central directives on national symbols.