Opinion National identity puzzle

Congress volunteers in Nagpur,commemorating Jallianwala Bagh massacre,hoisted the Swaraj flag on 13 April 1923. Pingali Venkayya,an agriculturist from Machilipatnam,designed this when,in 1921,Mahatma Gandhi proposed the Indian National Congress (INC) have a flag. The flag had red for Hindus,green for Muslims,and a manual spinning wheel (charkha) to symbolise Gandhiji’s call for India’s economic self-sufficiency. To include other religious communities,the design was modified with a central white stripe,and later red changed to saffron.

Before Independence Day,a committee headed by Rajendra Prasad with Maulana Abul Kalam Azad,Sarojini Naidu,C Rajagopalachari,KM Munshi and BR Ambedkar deliberated to find a national flag. They recommended the INC flag after replacing Gandhiji’s charkha by the chakra to represent the 3rd-century BC wheel of law of Mauryan Emperor Ashoka. Was this a quick-fix solution for lack of time or lack of ideas? Or was it a deliberate,forward-looking strategy of freedom fighters to transcend Gandhiji’s legacy into the future? With or without understanding the consequences,have they imposed the Congress party to becoming the nation’s representative?

Indian and Irish flag colours are the same,but Ireland’s in reverse vertical green-white-saffron order. Is there any connection? Apparently not,but the fact is that Annie Besant,INC President in 1917-18 was proud of her Irish origin. INC,founded in 1885 notably on AO Hume’s initiative,didn’t initially oppose British rule. When Britain needed its Empire’s support in World War I,Annie echoed the Irish nationalist slogan: “England’s need is India’s opportunity.” As editor of New India newspaper,she attacked the colonisers,demanding India’s self-rule.

In 1916,Annie launched India’s Home Rule League using the model. The League became India’s first political party to fight for change through public meetings and agitations. In June 1917,Annie was arrested. To show defiance,she flew a red and green flag in the garden of the house she was interned in. Both the Congress and Muslim League protested her arrest,which created an opportunity for them to come together for India’s independence movement. Such joint agitations forced the British government to free Annie,and announce Indian self-government as their ultimate aim. It’s paradoxical that both Ireland and India had nationalist,anti-British feelings,and same tricolour. Could it be that Pingali Venkayya was inspired by Annie’s red-green flag of 1917? Could it also be that Annie’s flag-flying act of protest was borrowed from Irish separatists’ anti-British reactions?

No democracy other than India has the national flag similar to a political party flag. Only in Communist China,does red dominate both country and party flags,although with different symbols. Erstwhile USSR,where Communism originated,had a single red flag from 1922-1991. When Mikhail Gorbachev dissolved the Soviet Union in 1991,Russia returned to its 1883 flag of white-blue-red,although Russia’s Communist party flag remained red.

India’s large majority is unlettered,and generally people only register colours for political parties. When the masses see the Congress tricolour,they can believe they are being patriotic,recall those colours when casting a vote,and consider they’ve voted for their country. This is unfair benefit that one party is lapping up over others. Breaking away from INC in 1967,Congress (Indira) had to perforce change its symbol from the charkha. The national flag colours were retained,but was the change to a palm considered breakthrough?

Gandhiji had always called for change. Following his ideology,shouldn’t the Congress radically modernise the party? When you write INC in any Internet search engine,you invariably get the charkha flag. What’s the sense or economic growth associated with charkha today? It was a tactical idea fit for a passive movement during the freedom struggle. It was not meant to be visionary or encourage innovation. Only drastic,visible change will clear the confusion of what the real Congress flag is,and cleanse its image of taking undue advantage of the tricolour from the legacy of Gandhi to Nehru,Indira to Sonia. Such difference from the past will attract the youth.

Let’s not tamper with our national flag,it builds our pride. Our people own those colours and symbol,and are happily flaunting them inside cricket stadiums. Just as India’s Government has enacted laws on flag usage,they should prevent political parties and other brands from appropriating national symbols and colours to encash those accompanying sentiments. An appropriate timeline can be given to make the changeover. With their own different ideologies,other political parties too can find powerful identities that are not dependent on the national tricolour. Then ‘Brand India’ can proudly promote its tricolour while racing to become the world’s No.1 economy in 2050,as reported by financial services group Citi. India wants to invite the young generation into politics,that’s essential for nation building. This calls for fundamental change in promoting and constraining national symbols and colours in today’s digital technology era that’s driven by globalisation.

Shombit Sengupta is an international creative business strategy consultant to top management. Reach him at http://www.shiningconsulting.com