In the present case the party flag was given precedence over the national flag. What made things worse was that senior leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid homage to Singh but remained mute spectators to this anomaly.
।। Kumkum Chadha।।
Earlier this week, a controversy erupted over the dead. And because it involved a politician, and that too one from the BJP, it created more hullaballoo than it otherwise would have.
Former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh died in Lucknow in the state of Uttar Pradesh earlier this month. His body in state was wrapped in the tricolour: a done thing when a person of stature dies even though the definition of stature can differ from person to person.
In Kalyan Singh’s case there were two flags: the Indian flag and the BJP’s party flag. As images of the scene flashed on social media, there were angry reactions because the Flag code had been violated and that too by the ruling party which carries nationalism on its sleeve.
The controversial images showed the saffron-and-green flag of the BJP placed over the Tricolour and that became the flashpoint.
According to Section 4 of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, “No other flag or bunting shall be placed higher than or above or, except as hereinafter provided, side by side with the National Flag; nor shall any object including flowers or garlands or emblem be placed on or above the Flag-mast from which the Flag is flown”.
In the present case the party flag was given precedence over the national flag. What made things worse was that senior leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid homage to Singh but remained mute spectators to this anomaly. What was expected and rightly so that someone should have stepped in to correct the mistake because to presume that it went unnoticed by one and all is a bit of a stretch. The first mistake having been committed probably by an overenthusiastic loyalist, called for course correction by those who are placed in leadership positions. But the tricolour remained embedded under the Party flag and the mourning continued.
Controversy is nothing new to Kalyan Singh but that it would haunt him even in Death was not something the stalwart would have ever bargained for. If his loyalists are to be believed this is one controversy he would have “detested”. Singh may be turning in his grave but those who queued up to pay homage to him, leaders and ministers included, did precious little to correct the grievous wrong.
In fact many questioned BJP’s definition of patriotism and sought to know whether the ruling Party both in the state of Uttar Pradesh where Singh’s body lay in state and Centre where the Modi led government was in power would put the Party above the nation. Not tough to answer but critics had a field day in putting the BJP on the mat.
Nationalists and patriots in whichever country or any part of the world they may be in, are sensitive to their national flag and emotions ride high when national integrity is in question. So also in India with Indians. And in his case the “crime” was compounded because it not only involved the BJP but a ruling Party and one which has hailed nationalism from rooftops.
That a national flag is not to be trifled with is a given. However there have been gross violations some of which went unpunished.
Celebrities like Sania Mirza, Amitabh Bachchan and even Sachin Tendulkar were in the eye of a storm for trifling with the tricolour. That they did it out of ignorance is a given.
Famous Tennis player Sania Mirza found herself in an Indian flag controversy after she was shown sitting with her feet facing the national flag placed on the table; Bachchan got into trouble for wrapping himself in the national flag to rejoice India’s sporting victory and Shah Rukh Khan who was booked for insulting the flag because he held it upside down after India’s World Cup win almost a decade ago.
Politician Shashi Tharoor was pulled to court for insulting the anthem way back in 2013. He was charged under Section 3 of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act which provides for punishment for those “who prevent the singing of the Indian national anthem or cause disturbance to any assembly engaged in such singing”.
Tharoor was dragged to Court on grounds that he had interrupted the singing of the anthem at a function held in Kochi in December 2008.
Tharoor is alleged to have asked the audience to sing the anthem by placing the right hand on the left side of their chest: the American way as against being in an attentive position, as is the norm here in India.
However, he was exonerated, with the Court ruling that the accused “did not have culpable intention” to cause disturbance to the singing of the anthem. If anything, his intention was to appeal to the audience to express their patriotism.
More importantly, the Court rejected the complainant’s contention that attention posture was prescribed for singing the national anthem and any deviation from that would be construed as disrespect.
As per the Act, “disrespect to the Indian National Flag means and includes,” among other things, “using the Indian National Flag as a drapery in any form whatsoever except in State funerals or armed forces or other paramilitary forces funerals”.
On state funerals, too, there are misgivings because often it is on the whim and fancy of the state government to accord one or not.
While state funerals are held when people who are holding or have held office of President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, Cabinet Minister, Chief Minister pass away, there is a provision of a state funeral being given in case of death of people not belonging to the armed forces, police or the above-mentioned categories by the state government which is when the national flag can be draped over the dead.
However there are cases when a state government has often overstepped and accorded a state funeral for persons not deserving one.
A case in point was the death under mysterious circumstances of a Bollywood actress in 2018. Apart from the Dubai Police hounding the next of her kin, her body of work comprised masala films and dancing around the trees kind of roles rather than any work of depth or artistic excellence. Under the circumstances, the announcement of a state funeral for her, raised many eyebrows.
Add to this the fact that very often the law enforcing agencies have looked the other way when the Flag code has been violated. In other cases, it has swooped on people violating the Flag Code.
When a media baron and former BJP MP died last year, his body was draped in the national flag even though he was not accorded a state funeral. Several leaders were witness to this, but no one said a word.
As against this, members of a farmer’s family were booked by the Uttar Pradesh Police because his body was allegedly draped in the national flag. The national flag was to honour “one of their own” who had lost his life protesting against the controversial farm laws.
Therefore the call of the day is for law enforcing agencies and governments to be strict in adhering to the Flag code and in case of violations swoop down equally and without discrimination. Were that principle to be followed then in the present case of Kalyan Singh, the ruling party and its minions in the BJP should be in the dock in this two-flag episode.
The writer is a senior Indian journalist, political commentator and columnist of The Independent. She can be reached at: (kumkum91@gmail.com
