 When the issue snowballed into a raging controversy, school management denied any external pressure.SDPI justified the changes in the programme saying that they approached the school management after a number of parents complained that some words in "Vande Matraam" and the gesture "namaste" were against their religious beliefs.In 2015, the acquitted SDPI candidate, Dr. Anas, accused the NIA and the police of falsely targeting both the SDPI and the Popular Front of India.