President Droupadi Murmu has given assent to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Act, 2026. Parliament passed it during the Monsoon Session — the Lok Sabha cleared it by voice vote on 30 July 2026, a day after the Rajya Sabha approved it. It extends the legal protection currently given to the National Anthem to India's National Song, Vande Mataram.

Basic Details

  • Ministry: Ministry of Home Affairs; the Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on 24 July 2026.

  • Base Act: Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, which penalises insults to the National Flag, the Constitution of India, and the National Anthem (Jana Gana Mana).

  • What Changed: The amendment substitutes Section 3 of the 1971 Act to bring the National Song within its protection.

Key Provisions

  • Equal Protection: Extends the Act's protection to Vande Mataram, giving it the same statutory status as the National Anthem.

  • Offence Defined: Intentionally preventing the singing of Vande Mataram, or causing disturbance to an assembly engaged in singing it, is now a punishable offence, mirroring the existing anthem provision.

  • Penalty: Imprisonment up to three years, a fine, or both.

  • Not Mandatory: The law does not make singing Vande Mataram compulsory — it only penalises deliberate obstruction or insult during its rendition.

Points of Debate

  • Government's Position: Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai framed the law as protecting national pride, saying it is "not against any state and ideology."

  • Opposition's Concern: DMK MP Kanimozhi argued the law risks reopening the Constituent Assembly-era compromise that gave official recognition only to the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram. She also flagged a possible impact on India's federal and secular character, since states such as Tamil Nadu have their own state songs.

Significance

  • Legal Parity: Confers formal legal parity between the National Anthem and the National Song for the first time.

  • Contested Backdrop: The amendment follows an MHA circular directing that all six stanzas of Vande Mataram be played at official functions and schools, which the Supreme Court and the Karnataka High Court have both declined to stay, while a similar plea remains pending before the Calcutta High Court.