India, July 30 -- With the passage of a bill that makes any insult or obstruction to the singing of Vande Mataram a punishable offence, the national song has officially ascended to the same status as the national anthem, marking yet another instance of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) cultural nationalism push. This is the culmination of an initiative that began with the government mandating the singing of the controversial six-stanza version of the national song and holding gala celebrations of the 150th anniversary of the song - which its supporters interpreted as championing nationalism and opponents insisted was cynical politics with an eye on elections. The bill amends the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, which m...