Sikhs Refuse to Sing ‘Vande Mataram’

AMRITSAR, 7 September 2006 — Sikh leaders in India said yesterday their followers should refuse to sing the country’s controversial national song, weighing in on a dispute that has bitterly divided Hindu nationalists and devout Muslims in the South Asian nation. Sikh leaders made their call a day before the centennial of the song “Vande Mataram,” which means in Hindi “I bow to thee, mother” and was a rallying cry for Indians to rise against British colonial rule in the early 20th century. The brouhaha surrounding the tune began in August after the federal government ordered the first two verses of it sung in schools to mark 100 years of its adoption as the country’s national song by the Indian National Congress on Sept. 7, 1906.