West Bengal government mandates singing Vande Mataram in all State-run schools during morning assembly

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday, May 14, 2026, issued an order making it mandatory for the National Song “Vande Mataram” to be sung during school assembly prayers before the start of classes in all government-run schools.

Sharing the notification made by the School Education Department on social media, Mr. Adhikari said, “In lieu of all previous orders and practices, the Government of West Bengal has made it mandatory for the National Song of Bharat – Vande Mataram – to be sung during School Assembly Prayers before the commencement of classes in all Schools under the Department of School Education in West Bengal.”

The notification retains the order of the Trinamool Congress in November 2025 whereby the government made it mandatory for all schools run and supported by the State Government to sing the State Song. Banglar Mati, Banglar Jolduring morning meetings. Banglar Mati, Banglar Jol It is a 1905 composition by Rabindranath Tagore, meaning ‘Land of Bengal, Water of Bengal’.

In February 2026, the Union government, in a set of instructions to States and other government bodies, stated that the national song Vande Mataram Must be sung or played before the national anthem Jana Ghana Mana when both songs are played at an event.

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government also held a debate in Parliament to mark the 150th anniversary of the song being written by Bengali novelist Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay.

During the campaign for the West Bengal Assembly elections, the BJP leadership had accused the Trinamool Congress government of not adequately recognizing this situation. Vande Mataram. Some members of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s family also joined the BJP. Sumitro Chatterjee, a descendant of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, contested and won the Naihati Assembly seat in North 24 Parganas on a BJP ticket.