The new BJP government in West Bengal is taking a number of decisions immediately after coming to power in the state displacing the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress. Now, the national song ‘Vande Mataram‘ has been made mandatory during morning assemblies in all government schools across West Bengal.
Notably, earlier this year, the centre government accorded ‘Vande Mataram’ a status equal to the country’s national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana’.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari announced the decision in his X post. The CM posted, “Overriding the previous directive, the West Bengal government has immediately made it mandatory for all schools under the Department of School Education to sing the Indian national song ‘Vande Mataram’ during the school assembly or morning prayer before the commencement of classes.”
পূর্ববর্তী নির্দেশ বাতিল করে, পশ্চিমবঙ্গ সরকার স্কুল শিক্ষা দপ্তরের অধীনে থাকা রাজ্যের সমস্ত বিদ্যালয়ে পঠনপাঠন শুরু হওয়ার আগে স্কুল অ্যাসেম্বলি বা প্রাতঃকালীন প্রার্থনার সময় ভারতের জাতীয় গান 'বন্দে মাতরম' গাওয়া তাৎক্ষণিকভাবে বাধ্যতামূলক করা হয়েছে। pic.twitter.com/QGrdZzik1u
— Suvendu Adhikari (@SuvenduWB) May 14, 2026
Earlier this year, a grand event was organised by the centre government to mark the 150th anniversary of the song being written by Bengali novelist Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay.
In February this year, the central government accorded it a status equal to the country’s national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana‘, making it compulsory that all six stanzas are sung at all government and school events alongside the national anthem. The decision had also become a political flashpoint with debate over singing all the 6 stanzas.
