(IANS/Sansad TV Photo)New Delhi, July 29 (IANS): The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which seeks to make the deliberate insult of the National Song 'Vande Mataram' a punishable offence on par with existing provisions for the National Anthem and other national symbols. He recalled that the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act was enacted in 1971 to protect national symbols. The present amendment aims to extend the same protection to “Vande Mataram”. He recalled that freedom fighters, including Chandrashekhar Azad, Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan and Khudiram Bose, had chanted Vande Mataram in their final moments. Rai linked the Bill to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of 'Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat' and said the complete Vande Mataram was essential for national unity.