HC dismisses PIL seeking change in words in National Anthem

The Bombay High Court today dismissed a PIL, which sought replacement of word 'Sindh' with 'Sindhu' in the National Anthem.

Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice Roshan Dalvi dismissed the petition, saying that the apex court had already dealt with the issue. The PIL, filed by retired professor Shreekant Malushte, had claimed that when the anthem was composed in 1917, 'Sindh' was a part of India, which is not so now. Therefore, he sought to replace the word 'Sindh' with 'Sindhu', a river in India.

The Union Home Ministry filed an affidavit the day before yesterday saying that both the versions of the national anthem, one using 'Sindh' and the other with 'Sindhu' are correct. The affidavit said, "Both the words refer to either the river or the Sindhi Community. The anthem is not a chronicle, which defines territory of a nation and does not enlist the states or regional areas, which was part of India at the point of time, when it was written."

The affidavit referred the Supreme Court judgement in May 2005, dismissing a petition seeking deletion of the word 'Sindh' and replacing it with 'Kashmir'. The affidavit said it was not necessary that the national anthem had to be modified every time there is a territorial change in the country. The deletion of the word 'Sindh' will be against the circular issued by the Ministry and would also amount to contempt of the apex court judgement.

The national anthem is sung and broadcast as per instructions issued by MHA through a circular in November 1953 that mentions the word 'Sindh'. "The anthem is also given in the booklet titled 'Our National Song' published by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in November 1951, which mentions the word 'Sindhu'," the affidavit said.