‘Ruling AAP’s flag colors’: Political row after Punjab orders color coding of 852 schools in blue, yellow

At 102, majority of schools will undergo colour coding in CM Bhagwant Mann’s home district Sangrur. Others include 37 in education minister Harjot Singh Bains’s home district Roopnagar (Ropar), 70 in Ludhiana and 84 in Amritsar district. 43 in Bathinda, 63 in Fazilka, 59 in Gurdaspur, 39 in Hoshiarpur, 40 in Jalandhar, 63 in Patiala, 32 in Tarn Taran, 30 in Mohali, 29 in Mansa, 22 in Ferozepur, 20 in Faridkot, 19 in Moga etc.

The DGSE’s order sent to the DEOs states that verandah and corridors (school building’s outer façade) has to be painted in “Enamel Rhapsody” and “egg custard”, while the walls inside classrooms have to be painted “enamel bronze mist and Sea Oats.” The order also has an attached pictorial representation of how the school will look after the repaint, which shows the outer building painted in shades of yellow and blue.

Reacting to the order, Giani Harpreet Singh, ex acting jathedar Akal Takht Sahib and now the president of Shiromani Akali Dal Punar Surjeet, a breakaway faction of SAD, wrote on X: “The Aam Aadmi Party’s decision to issue orders to paint government schools across Punjab in the colors of its party flag is not only deeply shameful but also poses a serious threat to the education system.”

“Schools and children are not propaganda tools for any political party. Attempting to impose a party’s identity by bringing children and educational institutions under political influence is condemnable and directly contradicts the fundamental principles of education. Government schools are the property of the state, not of any single political party. Painting them in political colors is an attack on children’s independent thinking and the freedom of education. We condemn such politically motivated orders issued under pressure and demand that they be withdrawn immediately. Keeping Punjab’s education system free from politics is the government’s responsibility,” wrote Singh.

The color code shades as attached in the official order. (Express)

Speaking to The Indian Express, Malvinder Singh Kang, AAP MP from Anandpur Sahib and party spokesperson, said there was “nothing political to be seen in the order”.

Mansa-based RTI activist Manik Goyal, who was booked by Ludhiana Police for “seeking details of CM Bhagwant Mann’s chopper rides”, wrote on Facebook: “This has never happened before in Punjab. Earlier they painted advertisements of every government scheme in their own colors, now schools too? That too by spending crores. Is this a party or an advertising company? The next step may be that the uniforms and books of school children should also be painted in yellow/blue colors because the elections are approaching.”

However, Kang argued, “Blue colour has always been associated with Shiromani Akali Dal. Every colour is associated with some party, for instance, red with communists and saffron with the BJP. The education department officials must have decided colour code for schools as per their choice. Blue and yellow have always been common choices for painting government buildings as they look formal and decent,” said Kang.

Aravind Kumar MK, Director General of School Education (DGSE), Punjab, said that “there was no political thinking behind the choice of the colors.”

“We are getting only those schools whitewashed/painted which haven’t been done in the past five years or more. The work has already completed in most of the districts. There was no intention to match the colors with that of the ruling party’s flag. No politics is involved here,” the DGSE said.

A senior education official said, “The funds for this colour coding are being provided entirely from the state budget, and not from Samagra Shiksha which has 60:40 ratio of Centre/State funding. But we had nothing political in mind before selecting these colors.”