'Conscientious objector can't face criminal action for refusing to sing Vande Mataram': Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Tuesday observed that people who respectfully refuse to sing one or all stanzas of Vande Mataram on grounds of religion or conscience should not face criminal consequences. The bench cited its 1986 Bijoe Emmanuel judgment, while noting that the government could determine the national song and its prescribed stanzas under the law.