BJP's Syed Shahnawaz Hussain backs decision of UP to make national anthem compulsory in madrasas

The recent issue which caught the eye of many politicians, plus sparked debate and criticism, is the Uttar Pradesh Education Board making singing of the National Anthem compulsory in madrasas. While it received different responses, now, the senior leader of BJP Syed Shahnawaz Hussain has his say about the decision.

The senior leader from Bihar, who is the national spokesperson of the party, recollected that he also studied in a madrasa and claimed that Jana Gana Mana was sung gladly and readily.    

He said, "Was the national anthem not being sung at UP madrasas so far? If that is so, I am hugely surprised." This was stated in a report by PTI.

Recollecting his old days, Hussain asserted, "I have studied at a madrasa myself. There, we used to recite the national anthem gladly and willingly. There can be nothing objectionable in showing reverence for the nation." 

Some Islamic scholars and clerics claimed that the wordings of the national anthem, penned by Rabindra Nath Tagore, are against their religious principles, as stated in a report by PTI.

Recitation of the national anthem, as also the national song Vande Mataram made popular by the novel Anandmath of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, has become a bone of contention between the BJP and those who equate the party's insistence on Hindu supremacism.

During the budget session, the Bihar Assembly saw many heated arguments between MLAs of BJP and AIMIM Chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi over the issue.

Few MLAs of BJP opined that the legislators who were against the decision to recite the national anthem deserved disqualification.