New Delhi, 9 December 2025: Maulana Arshad Madani, head of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, has reignited the long-running Vande Mataram debate by saying that Muslims can love India but not a song that compares the homeland to a god.
The argument started after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha speech on Vande Mataram’s 150th anniversary. He said that Jawaharlal Nehru “appeased” Muslim complaints instead of making them follow the whole anthem. Madani quickly replied on X (formerly Twitter) with a long thread that went viral and got over a million views in a few hours.
Don’t Idolise India, Love It
“India is our cherished homeland. Madani stated, “It’s freedom costs the lives of millions of Muslims.” “But Vande Mataram has lines that worship the land as a goddess, which is wrong and not allowed in Islam. A Muslim cannot give up anything for Tauheed (monotheism).
He cited Articles 19 and 25 of the Constitution. He stressed that forcing people to say religiously offensive verses goes against freedom of conscience, even though patriotism is a job.
History Leading Up To It
Since 1937, the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has been against making everyone sing Vande Mataram. A 1938 group led by Maulana Hussain Ahmad Madani said that only the first two stanzas were patriotic and did not allow any of the lines that showed Bharat as the goddess Durga. Even after India made these stanzas public in 1950, there were still complaints about lines like “Tvam hi Durga dashapraharana-dharini.”
Social Media and People’s Responses
Both #VandeMataram and #RespectConstitution were trending across the country within hours. Supporters called Madani’s “constitutional courage” praise, but critics called his statement “anti-national” and asked why similar complaints are not raised in other countries.
Actions by politicians
The comment was called “regressive separatism” by BJP leaders. One MP tweeted, “Don’t expect Mataram’s benefits if you can’t say Vande.”
Congress did not take sides and said
“Respect for national symbols should come from the heart, not coercion.”
India is celebrating 150 years of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s famous song. Maulana Arshad Madani’s statement, “We love India, but cannot worship the motherland,” shows how hard it is to find a balance between religion, freedom, and nationalism in a country with so many different kinds of people.
