Vande Mataram Revisited, 2006
Bankim Chandra Chatterjee wrote the Vande Mataram, or at least the first two stanzas of the song, sometime in early 1870s, probably in 1876. He wrote Anandmath, his novel celebrating the sanyasi uprising against the rule of Bengal’s Muslim Sultans in 1882. The song was expanded to its full version and incorporated in the Anandamath in 1882.
The song was meant more specifically for Bengal in terms of geographical imagery and references to Durga. Even Sri Aurobindo translated it as the “National Anthem of Bengal”.
Rabindranath Tagore sang it in 1896 at the Calcutta Congress Session. During Bengal Partition Agitation in 1905, the British banned utterance of Vande Mataram in public places. But thousands courted prison with the slogan or song on their lips.
Muslims felt offended by the depiction of the nation as goddess Durga. Also, they felt Anandamath had an anti-Muslim message. Tagore too felt the song was not one that would unite all communities in India.
In the late 30’s Muslim objection became a political issue. The Congress responded positively. Its Working Committee appointed a Committee consisting of Nehru, Gandhi, Azad and Bose at its Calcutta meeting (October-November, 1937). This Committee issued a historic statement on October 28, 1937, which said that the first two stanzas of the song had no religious allusions. “There was absolutely nothing in them to which objection could be taken from the religious or any other point of view ... the other stanzas of the song are little known and hardly ever sung. They contain certain allusions and a religious ideology which may not be in keeping with the ideology of other religious groups (emphasis added) in India. Wherever Vande Mataram is sung at national gatherings only the first two stanzas should be sung…”
Yet, the Muslims objection persisted and though the  Vande Mataram was recognized by the Constituent Assembly in 1949 as the National Song, in addition to the National Anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’, the Muslim objection surfaced from time to time. Because of the prominence given to the National Anthem, the Hindutva forces have advocated Vande Mataram as a test of patriotism, in reality, to highlight Hindu Nationalism.
The crux of the Muslim objection lies in the interpretation given to the word ‘Vande’. This may mean ‘respect’, ‘bow’, ‘salute’, or ‘worship’, according to the context.
Muslim Indians have never hesitated to shout Jai Hind (Glory to India!) or sing the National Anthem, which is normally played at the beginning and end of all formal functions. Any number of paeans to the Motherland have been written by Muslims in poetry and prose, in many languages including Urdu, but they do not view the motherland as a deity. On the other hand, the context of this song is an anti-Muslim novel written by an openly anti-Muslim writer who identifies the motherland with the goddess Durga.
In a case relating to the National Anthem; the Supreme Court ruled that those present may not sing it but they must show due respect to it because it is the National Anthem. The ruling can be stretched to apply to the National Song. So the Muslim Indians should stand up and listen to the National Song in silence though they may not sing it. And any demand to substitute it by another patriotic song is misconceived and too late in the day.
Muslim Indians recall that in 1969, even the BJP Government in UP had to back down on a similar move, and, what is important, their national leader Vajpayee and Advani advised against compulsion. Even the Sangh Parivar knows that they cannot force anyone to sing anything.  But loyalty test is a universal test, used by chauvinists and fascists all over the world, particularly because it incites mass hatred. So it is read in India by anti-Muslim forces as a stick to beat Muslim Indian with..
Muslim organizations and institutions should not react because thus they fall into the Hindutva trap. They should simply advise the Muslim community that their children stand up to show respect when the National Song is sung at the school assembly but they need not repeat its words and resist any compulsion, non-violently.
Many years ago I said in a public speech in Mumbai that I have recited the song many times on my own but if someone tells me that ‘Is desh main rahna hai to Vande Mataram kahna hoga’, I shall never say it.  Similarly as a MP, I objected to the ill-conceived move to close the Session of the Parliament with Vande Mataram but it was unanimously accepted by all political parties, including the Congress and the Left! However, just a handful of members are normally present in the House when the Session closes. And anyone can decide whether he should stay to the end.
The Constitution grants not only Freedom of Religion but also Freedom of Conscience. When France banned wearing of headscarves by girl students on pain of expulsion from government schools or when Turkey banned the women members of Parliament from wearing scarf and even disqualify them if they do, it is a coercion against which the human spirit rebels. Freedom is the key to resolve questions of conscience. If a young man may refuse to serve in the armed forces as an objector of conscience, how can any government, even if physically it has the capacity to monitor singing by anyone anywhere, (impossible even in the computer age) force a student to sing a song?
A secular State must respect the religious susceptibilities, sentiments and feelings of its people and protect them from force, coercion and violence or even mockery, if used to make them fall in line. A democratic state cannot be a police State and cannot keep a tab on how every citizen behaves. 
Let India, our beloved motherland be a secular, democratic State, for a multi-religious, multi-lingual, multi-racial society. This demands accommodation, flexibility, tolerance and mutual respect by all and everyone.