This happened after the Union Cabinet approved the proposal to amend the Prevention of Insults to National Honor Act to put ‘Vande Mataram’ at par with the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’.Under the proposed amendment, insulting or disrupting the national anthem could attract the same punishment as is currently applicable to the national anthem, the national flag and the Constitution.‘Violation of established tradition’CPI, one of the parties that supported TVK in forming the government, strongly objected to the order of playing the songs and said that “Tamil Thai Vazhathu” should retain the most prominent place in government functions in the state.CPI state secretary M Veerapandian issued a letter after the swearing-in ceremony and said the order was a violation of the long-standing tradition in Tamil Nadu, where official ceremonies traditionally begin with ‘Tamil Thai Vazhathu’ and end with the national anthem.“As per the instructions issued by the Raj Bhavan, giving priority to the song ‘Vande Mataram’ and placing Tamil at the third position in the program program of the swearing-in ceremony organized by the Government of Tamil Nadu is a violation of the established tradition. The Government of Tamil Nadu should tell the public who was responsible for this omission. Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam should ensure that Thamizhathai Vazhathu is given primacy. Such errors should not be allowed to continue. TN Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and the Pro Tem Speaker are to ensure that during tomorrow’s Assembly session called for the swearing-in of MLAs as well as all government functions and functions, Thamizhthai Vazhathu is sung at the beginning and the national anthem is played at the conclusion,” Veerapandian wrote in the letter.Veerapandian further alleged that the issue has historical and ideological implications. He said it was during the freedom struggle itself that it was decided that ‘Vande Mataram’ could not serve as the national anthem because the song was dedicated to a specific deity and had a communal religious character.“In this context, the decision taken allegedly under the instructions of Lok Bhavan to give priority place to ‘Vande Mataram’ by keeping the Tamil invocation at the third position in the agenda of the swearing-in ceremony organized by the Tamil Nadu government is a violation of the established tradition,” he alleged.TVK distanced itselfSoon after the controversy began, TVK distanced itself and claimed that the party did not agree with the Tamil invocation song being played at the third position and supported the “common practice” followed in Tamil Nadu.Minister Aadhav Arjun said, “The Tamil invocation song beginning with ‘Neerarum Kadludutha…’ carries a century-old legacy of historical glory. As a continuation of the aspiration ‘May it spread throughout the world…’, this song was declared the state anthem by the Government of Tamil Nadu. It is a very solemn Tamil invocation song which is first played at functions including government functions in Tamil Nadu. The national anthem is played at the end of the program. This is common practice; Proper practice.”“The new government formed in Tamil Nadu led by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam has no different view on this customary practice. As such, at today’s swearing-in ceremony for the Chief Minister and other ministers held under the chairmanship of Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, first the Vande Mataram was played, then the national anthem and the third Tamil invocation song was played. This new practice is not suitable for Tamil Nadu. “In mother Tamil Nadu, the Tamil Nadu government led by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam does not agree with the Tamil invocation song being played at the third position,” he said.He further said that in future, the state song will be played at the beginning of the programs and the national anthem will be played at the end.“When we pressed the Governor’s side on this matter, it was told that it is the responsibility of the Governor to act as per the new circular of the Central Government. In that unavoidable situation, the Tamil invocation song was played as the third song. However, this new practice will not be followed in future. Instead, as per earlier practice, the Tamil invocation song will be played at the beginning of the program and the national anthem at the end!” he said.Message for BJP?The move, which is being seen as a message to the BJP, comes in line with the Union Home Ministry’s directive making it mandatory to play the full version of the national anthem at ceremonial and government functions.Although the Centre’s rules were followed in Tamil Nadu, they were not followed at the swearing-in ceremony of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday.The event was historic as it was the first time that the BJP government was formed in Bengal and it was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and others.During the ceremony, Vijay stood next to the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, who has sharply criticized the Centre’s allegation that the Congress during Jawaharlal Nehru’s time had removed parts of Vande Mataram to stoke communal tension.