Madhya Pradesh Congress has attacked the ruling BJP for setting up national flag ‘sale centres’ in its offices across the state, saying that the selling of the national flag from party offices was an ‘unpardonable political crime’.
MP BJP president Vishnu Dutt Sharma opened what the party called ‘suvidha vikray kendra’ (sale facilitation centre) at the party headquarters in Bhopal and announced that similar centres are being established in all the 1070 mandal (zone) and 52 district offices of the party “so that the national flag is available to all citizens”.
National flags of different sizes will be available at the centres and the price range is from Rs 10 to Rs 950. Sharma himself purchased a flag worth Rs 250 during the event to formally open the centre at the BJP headquarters.
The party said that this initiative is part of the nationwide ‘har ghar tiranga’ (tricolor at every home) campaign of the saffron party during the 75th anniversary of Indian independence, wherein Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called upon all citizens to hoist national flags on their homes between August 13 and 15.
The MP Congress took serious objection to the selling of flags from the BJP office. Party's media cell chief K.K. Mishra said that it was utterly shameful and objectionable to sell the national tricolor, which is a symbol of the country’s independence, self-respect, pride and dignity, from the BJP office. “The opening of the tricolor sale centre at BJP office is an unpardonable political sin,” Mishra said in a statement. He added that Guru Golwalkar of the same ideology had appealed not to put up the tricolor at homes, calling it inauspicious and asked how suddenly the same flag has turned into a symbol of self-respect for the BJP today.
Mishra also alleged that the BJP-led government at the Centre has given out a contract worth Rs 1000 crores for making the national flags to 11 companies, of which seven are from Gujarat. Flags are being made of polyester instead of Khadi and will cost around Rs 30-40 each. Also, Rs 300 crores is to be spent on the campaign. He asked whether the BJP is a GST registered company to engage in sale of the national tricolor.
He further said that BJP is the richest party in the world that has a five-star party office in Delhi and a similar office worth millions is being constructed in Bhopal. The party spends millions to destabilize non-BJP governments in different states, but now it is resorting to opening tricolor sale centres at its office. “It is unfortunate that those who worked as informers for the British during the independence struggle are now playing their part in the 75th anniversary celebration by selling the national flag.”
BJP state president Vishnu Dutt Sharma however dismissed the allegations of the Congress as the sign of its ‘mental bankruptcy’. “We are making available the national flag from our offices across the state in a bid to ensure that the entire state is painted in tricolor. The congress has problems with all good campaigns. They even took objection to the Covid-19 vaccination drive and the praise that Prime Minister Narendra Modi got for it from across the world.”
Further asking why the Congress was getting stomach ache regarding the nationwide ‘har ghar tiranga’ campaign, Sharma said that the opposition party always has a problem with patriotism and nationalism.
MP BJP media in-charge Lokendra Parashar told THE WEEK that the intention of setting up the centres at BJP offices was to ensure that national flags of standard size and specifications were available to the citizens at production cost. He said that a similar initiative is being taken at BJP offices across the country.
