Singing of Vande Mataram anti-Islamic: Aasiya Andrabi

Nov 16: The singing of national song by the school children of Indian administered Kashmir at Sher-e-Kashmir International Convocation Center on the occasion of the birth anniversary of the first Prime Minister of India, J L Nehru has sparked an age old controversy once again and invited criticism from the Islamic cleric cadre calling the act anti-Islamic.

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Asiya Andrabi, the leader of the women’s separatist organisation, Dukhtaran-I-Milat objected to the singing of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ by the school children and giving strong reactions she called it a conspiracy of government of India.

She said that it is a responsibility of Ulemas and Moulvis to make people understand the conspiracy plotted against them to attack their religious identity. She also invited those clerics who have any confusion and want to update their knowledge about the singing this song. She also told that her party will ask Islamic clerics to deliver sermons on Friday creating awareness in Muslims that they should not sing this song in future.

She asked people to provide their children religious education first. She said that those who chanted the song will have to read ‘Kalma’ to get into the fold of Islam.

This is for the first time that ‘Vande Mataram has been sung by the school children in Kashmir. Singing of ‘Vande Mataram’ is objected on the ground that the song describes the nation, as a goddess while Islam does not permit idol worship and Polytheism. God is one for Muslims and praise of the Goddess would amount to be against the basic tenets of Islam.

This national song of India was originally published in the political novel of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s ‘Anand Math’, which depicts the ‘Sanyasi Rebellion’. The book called for the Brahmin nationalism but in actual rebellion both Hindu sanyasis and Muslim fakirs rebelled against the British East India Company.

The issue has not come for the first time as earlier it made news in 1998 when All India Muslim personal law board issued a fatwa asking Muslim parents to get their children out of the schools if UP government forces to sing the song in schools. This has been a controversial issue during independence struggle too.

Even in 2006 its mandatory rendition by the government on the centenary year of the song created uproar in the country.