It's not hard to miss the raging debate on the Tiranga Yatra by the BJP Youth Wing which aims to hoist THE Indian Tricolour at Lal Chowk in Srinagar. The BJP says it is an attempt to make the people of the country more nationalistic fervour amongst the citizens while their opponents, including the Central and J&K state governments have labelled it as a political stunt which will destabilize the peace in the valley. The secessionists have now jumped into the fray daring the
BJP or anyone for that matter to launch the Tricolour.
Now the aam aadmi in me isn't convinced by the BJP's explanation for this yatra. That being said, I strongly believe that they have every right to hoist the Tricolour in any and every part of the sovereign Republic of India so long as the flag is respected in accordance with the Model Flag Code. Lal Chowk in Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir is part of our sovereign nation and the flag hoisting cannot be termed as an offence in any manner by ANY citizen of India. The comments of J&K CM, Omar Abdullah, stating that he will not be responsible for the aftermath of the flag hoisting at Lal Chowk are uncalled for and an abdication of the duty and responsibility that he swore to fulfill as per the Indian Constitution, Article 370 notwithstanding. His comments and behaviour in this whole episode have been disappointing and make a fit case for his dismissal for failing to discharge his constitutionally mandated duties.
In the meanwhile, the separatists group in the Valley has, predictably, dared the BJP to hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk. The statement by the separatists is not surprising at all. What is surprising in fact is the support they have got from various quarters of elected representatives from the Valley and the central government who have sworn allegiance to the Indian Constitution. This emboldens the separatists to make threats and prompting the commentators to talk about the destabilizing effect of hoisting the Tricolour. In my view, the separatists have no legitimacy under the Constitution and should be dealt with an iron hand by the security agencies.
As the various interested parties duke it out in the media over this issue, I am more concerned about the security agencies who find themselves once again in between a rock and a hard place. The police, paramilitary and army will no doubt be called in to enforce the law & order and security situation. Given the indications from both sides, this issue is headed for a confrontation. The security men & women will find themselves torn between obeying the orders of the civilian
executive, as bound by their oaths, and the thought of confronting people carrying the Tricolour, the very piece cloth for whose honour and pride they have fought, killed and died. This is truly disheartening and a travesty of justice, which will potentially scar the nation for a long time to come.
I sincerely hope that better sense prevails and the Tricolour is hoisted at Lal Chowk on the Republic Day without any untoward incidents, which will definitely be attempted by vested parties. The Indian Tricolour should be above all politics and it's constitutionally guaranteed rights and privilege protected and preserved at ALL costs.
