Deoband (Uttar Pradesh), Nov 3 (IANS) The Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind, one of the largest organisations of Muslim clerics in India, Tuesday supported a decree against the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ on the ground that some of its lines were ‘against the religious principles of Islam’.

The resolution asking Muslims not to sing the ‘Vande Mataram’ was passed at the national convention of the Jamiat held at Darul Uloom, Deoband, one the largest Muslim seminaries in South Asia, about 150 km from the national capital.

Home Minister P. Chidambaram was present at the convention, which was also attended by some Hindu priests.

Muslim clerics had issued the fatwa, or decree, against the national song in 2006. They contend that ‘Vande Mataram’ means ‘Mother (India), I bow to thee!’.

‘Some of its lines are, of course, against the religious principles of Islam. We cannot bow before anybody other than the Allah. It is un-Islamic,’ Moulana Muizuddin of the Jamiat said.

‘Islam teaches us to worship only one god, the Allah. We are Indians and there are other ways to express our feelings for the nation rather than bowing before it. Loving your country doesn’t only mean worshipping it,’ Muizuddin told IANS.

‘We love our mothers. Islam doesn’t even permit bowing before mother. We love the Prophet, but we cannot bow even before him.’

Maulana Salman, who teaches at the Deoband seminary, said: ‘We are true Muslims and true Indians. There is no doubt about that. But we no longer remain Muslims when we offer our prayers to anybody else than the Allah. Patriotism is not only about singing songs. We are and will remain Indians without singing Vande Mataram.’