The National Symbols of India
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Mahatma Gandhi
Due respect to Gandhi’s symbols
Dipak Dash, `Don't place Gandhi symbols in dirty places', Jan 17, 2017: The Times of India
The Centre has suggested that state govern ments avoid using sketch es, photos or logos of Ma hatma Gand hi or his be longings such as his iconic spectacles, charkha or watch on walls of public toilets, garbage bins or any other places that could be considered dirty .
In a recent advisory issued to all the secretaries in-charge of sanitation, drinking water and sanitation ministry said this should be done “so that sentiment of anyone may (not) be hurt in implementing Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) programme.“
The ministry has asked the department heads to issue similar directions to all districts and other authorities concerned.
The circular was issued following a case filed by one Badruddin Qureshi in Chhattisgarh high court against the use of sketches and photos or belongings of Gandhi on walls of public toilets and “filthy“ places.
Though the court had dismissed the petition, it said, “We do not feel that this is such an infringement and disrespect to the father of the nation. But at the same time, we feel that Union of India must respond and assure on affidavit that wherever any symbol associated with Mahatma Gandhi is used, it shall be used and placed in such a fashion and that it cannot be easily defaced and should not be used in such a manner which causes disrespect to the father of the nation.“
Don't display Gandhiji's glasses on bins, in toilets: Odisha
The Odisha government has directed all district collectors and urban local bodies not to use the logo of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) -meant to honour Mahatma Gandhi and his emphasis on cleanliness -in an improper manner in places like public toilets. The mission uses a logo inspired by Gandhi's famous round glasses for its countrywide campaigns.
The Odisha advisory follows the Centre's May 16 directive to all state-level directors of SBM saying guidelines issued by Chhattisgarh HC -which in January had issued a notice to the Raman Singh government to prevent pictorial illustration of Gandhi's spectacles on dustbins, public toilets and trash cans -must be observed.
SBM director in Odisha, Parameswaran B, said Gandhi's image or that of any of his other belongings, like the spinning wheel, his walking stick or watch, should not be used “on the walls of public toilets, garbage bins and other such filthy places during the SBM campaign.“ The director said there was no blanket ban on use of the logo but it should be used in a respectful manner. “District collectors will be responsible for supervision of the implementation of the guidelines,“ he said.
The constitutional and legal position
When actress Raquel Welch wore a bikini made of the US flag, the Stars and Stripes, for Gore Vidal’s Myra Breckinridge (1970), there were some murmurs and comments, but nothing more. No one filed a police case against her or dragged her to court for insulting the national flag.
The Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act
Its essence
The Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act is administered by the ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution.
According to section-3 of the Act, no per son shall use any “specified“ name or emblem for the purpose of any trade, business or any such activities without the “previous permission of the central government“ or officers authorised by the government.
The list of nearly three dozens names and emblems that cannot be used without prior permission of government includes President of India, Prime Minister, governor of a state, Government of India or any state, Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, United Nations Organisation, Ashok Chakra or Dharma Chakra.
Till 2016 the law governing prevention of improper use of emblems and names of 1950 provided for the rather insignificant penalty of Rs 500 for violating norms.
Major violations in 2016
Samajwadi Party MP Neeraj Shekhar raised serious questions about how the PM's photograph can be used by a private industry major to advertise its products.
i) Reliance Jio used Prime Minister Narendra Modi's photograph in print and electronic advertisements without permission. Minister of state for information and broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore had said in a written reply that “no permission was granted by prime minister's office“ for using Modi's photographs in the advertisements.
ii) The opposition had also questioned the PM's photographs featuring in advertisements issued by e-wallet Paytm [the biggest shareholder of which is the Chinese Alibaba] after Modi announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.
Shekhar had sought to know whether there was any law that permits PM from becoming a brand ambassador of a private company
Disrespecting the national flag and anthem
Up to 3 years' jail for insulting national anthem, Dec 05 2016 : The Times of India
What does the constitution say about disrespecting the national flag and anthem?
In the section on fundamental duties, the constitution states that it is the duty of every citizen of India to abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions --the national flag and the national anthem. Apart from this, the constitution (application to Jammu & Kashmir) Order, 1954 stipulates that Parliament has exclusive rights to make laws with respect to insult to the Indian national flag, national anthem and the constitution.
Under what Act does a person get punished if he she has insulted the national flag or anthem?
Under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, it is a punishable offence to insult the national flag and the constitution. A person can be punished with imprisonment for a term that may extend to three years or with a fine or with both.Similarly , intentional prevention of singing of the national anthem or causing disturbances to an assembly engaged in such singing is also punishable for up to three years with or without fine. What actions can be seen as disrespect to the flag?
Acts like burning, mutilating, defacing, disfiguring, destroying or otherwise showing disrespect to or bringing into contempt by speeches or writing within public view are classified as showing disrespect to the flag. However, comments expressing disapproval or criticism of the flag or the constitution with a view to obtaining an amendment in the constitution o not constitute an offence under this section.Some other acts that qualify as disrespecting the flag are using the flag as drapery in any form except state funeral or funerals of armed and paramilitary forces .
What regulatory compliances are required while playing or singing the national anthem?
There are different guide lines for playing and singing the national anthem.The full version is 52 seconds, while the duration of the short version is about 20 seconds. The full version can be played during a national salute given on ceremonial occasions to the president governors and so on. The short version is played when drinking toasts in messes.
There are no restrictions on singing of the anthem as long as proper decorum is maintained. Whenever the anthem is sung or played, the audience is required to stand to attention. An order dated March 2016 however clarifies that in the course of a newsreel or documentary when the anthem is played as a part of the film, it is not expected of the audience to stand.
Asian sensitiveness vs. indifference in Canada, UK, USA
The Times of India, Jan 13 2017
Angry at finding out that Amazon Canada was selling doormats that resembled the Indian tricolour, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj warned that no Amazon official would get a visa to India if the product wasn't removed. Amazon readily complied, and with an apology. But around the world, flags are put to interesting use.
STATE EMBLEM
The state emblem is an adaptation from the Sarnath Lion Capital of Ashoka. In the original, there are four lions, standing back to back, mounted on an abacus with a frieze carrying sculptures in high relief of an elephant, a galloping horse, a bull and a lion separated by intervening wheels over a bell-shaped lotus. Carved out of a single block of polished sandstone, the Capital is crowned by the Wheel of the Law (Dharma Chakra).
In the state emblem, adopted by the Government of India on 26th January 1950, only three lions are visible, the fourth being hidden from view. The wheel appears in relief in the centre of the abacus with a bull on right and a horse on left and the outlines of other wheels on extreme right and left. The bell-shaped lotus has been omitted. The words Satyameva Jayate from Mundaka Upanishad, meaning 'Truth Alone Triumphs', are inscribed below the abacus in Devanagari script. The use of the state emblem of India, as the official seal of the Government of India, is regulated by the state of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005.
NATIONAL ANTHEM
National icons
Pictures to be displayed in courts
Tamil Nadu
July 23, 2023: The Times of India
Chennai : Courts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry can display portraits of only Mahatma Gandhi and the Tamil poet-saint Thiruvalluvar, the Madras high court has said in acircular in which it instructed the Kancheepuram principal district judge to persuade the bar association at Alandur to remove portraits of BR Ambedkar from the entrance hall of the newly-constructed combined court complex, reports Sureshkumar K. The July 7 circular was sent to all district courts. It referred to incidents in which “damage has been caused to statues of national leaders, leading to friction” and law and order issues in different places.
Details
July 23, 2023: The Times of India
Only Thiruvalluvar, Gandhi images in court: Madras HC
Says Ambedkar Portraits Must Go
Chennai : Courts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry can display portraits of only Mahatma Gandhi and the Tamil poet-saint Thiruvalluvar, the Madras high court has said in acircular in which it instructed the Kancheepuram principal district judge to persuade the bar association at Alandur to remove portraits of BR Ambedkar from the entrance hall of the newly-constructed combined court complex, reports Sureshkumar K. The July 7 circular was sent to all district courts.
It referred to incidents in which “damage has been caused to statues of national leaders, leading to friction” and law and order issues in different places.
National flag: India
NATIONAL SONG
See Vande Mataram
State songs
Tamil Thai Vaazhthu
Manash Gohain, April 28, 2022: The Times of India
New Delhi: The central government is of the view that the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) may play the song “Tamil Thai Vaazhthu” in addition to “Vande Mataram” and the National Anthem in its official programmes and functions. According to sources from the ministry of education, all Indian language and culture should be promoted. A communication on the same will be sent to the IIT soon.
The Tamil Nadu government in December announced “Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu,” as the state anthem and directed that all present during its rendition should remain standing. Earlier in November higher education minister of Tamil Nadu, K Ponmudi wrote a letter to the IIT on the issue taking exception to the song not being played during the convocation.
Tamil Thai Vaazhthu was penned by Manonmaniam Sundaram Pillai and composed by M S Viswanathan and is an invocation sung in praise of Mother Tamil. In a letter to the then director of IIT-M, Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Ponmudi said: “It is disheartening to learn that in the recently concluded convocation (November 20, 2021), the state invocation song ‘Tamil Thai Vaazhthu’ was not sung. ”
“The IIT is an autonomous institution. However, the ministry will issue a communication to the IIT on the same stating the government’s view on the matter which is that all Indian language and culture are to be promoted in our institutions,” said a senior official at the ministry of education.
NATIONAL CALENDAR
The national calendar based on the Saka Era, with Chaitra as its first month and a normal year of 365 days was adopted from 22nd March 1957 along with the Gregorian calendar for the following official purposes: (i) Gazette of India, (ii) news broadcast by All India Radio, (iii) calendars issued by the Government of India and (iv) Government communications addressed to the members of the public.
Dates of the national calendar have a permanent correspondence with dates of the Gregorian calendar, 1 Chaitra falling on 22 March normally and on 21 March in leap year.
NATIONALANIMAL
Panthera tigris
The magnificent tiger, Panthera tigris, a striped animal is the national animal2 of India, it has a thick yellow coat of fur with dark stripes. The combination of grace, strength, ability and enormous power has earned the tiger its pride of place as the national animal of India. Out of eight races of the species known, the Indian race, the Royal Bengal Tiger, is found throughout the country except in the north-western region and also in the neighbouring countries, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
The cow as a national animal
Govt avoids direct answer to query on cow as national animal, The Press Trust of India, 7 Aug 2023
A BJP Lok Sabha member has asked the government in Parliament whether it intends to recognise ‘gaumata’ (cow) as a “national animal” that is an integral part of the Indian culture.Ajmer MP Bhagirath Choudhary asked this question in the lower House to which no direct response was given.
Union minister of culture G Kishan Reddy, in his response, said, “As informed by the department of animal husbandry, under the distribution of legislative powers between the Union and the states, (Article 246(3) of the Constitution) preservation of animal is a matter on which the state legislature has exclusive powers to legislate”. The government had notified tiger and peacock as ‘National Animal’ and ‘National Bird’ respectively, the minister said.
NATIONAL BIRD
The Indian peacock, Pavo cristatus, the national bird of India, is a colourful, swansized bird, with a fan-shaped crest of feathers, a white patch under the eye and a long, slender neck. The male of the species is more colourful than the female, with a glistening blue breast and neck and a spectacular bronze-green trail of around 200 elongated feathers. The female is brownish, slightly smaller than the male and lacks the trail. The elaborate courtship dance of the male, fanning out the tail and preening its feathers is a gorgeous sight.
HC judge on why the celibate peacock is the national bird
Rajasthan high court judge Mahesh Chand Sharma said that a peacock does not mate with a peahen to procreate and it was because of this “quality“ that it was declared India's national bird.
Earlier on Wednesday , his last day in office, Sharma had observed while disposing of a petition that cow should be declared the national animal.
Sharma drew a parallel between the cow and peacock to highlight their `holy' qualities. “Peacock ki bhi quality hai, vo bhi mein bata deta hun aapko kyon declare kiya. Jo mor hai ye aajeevan brahm chari hai. Ye kabhi bhi morni ke saath sex nahi karta. Iske jo aansu aate hain, morni usey chug kar garbhvati hoti hai, mor ya morni ko janm deti hai,“ he said at a function to mark his last day in office. Elaborating on how peacock is considered holy because of its so-called celibacy, Sharma said: “Mor ka pankh bhi bhagwan Krishna ne isi liye lagaya. Sadhu-santon aur mandiron mein issi liye mor ko kaam mein liya jata hai -brahmcharya hai.(Lord Krishna wore the peacock feather for this reason.The feather is used by saints and priests and in temples because peacock is a celibate.)“
NATIONAL FLOWER
Lotus (Nelumbo Nucipera Gaertn) is the National Flower of India. It is a sacred flower and occupies a unique position in the art and mythology of ancient India and has been an auspicious symbol of Indian culture since time immemorial.
NATIONAL TREE
The Banyan Tree (Ficus benghalensis) is the National Tree of India. This huge tree towers over its neighbours and has the widest reaching roots of all known trees, easily covering several acres. It sends off new shoots from its roots, so that one tree is really a tangle of branches, roots, and trunks.
NATIONAL FRUIT
Mango (Manigifera indica) is the National fruit of India. Mango is one of the most widely grown fruits of the tropical countries. In India, mango is cultivated almost in all parts, with the exception of hilly areas. Mango is a rich source of Vitamins A, C and D. In India, we have hundreds of varieties of mangoes. They are of different sizes, shapes and colours. Mangoes have been cultivated in India since time immemorial.
President/ Prime Minister’s photographs
2019: Stricter penalty for misuse
Dipak Dash, Nov 13, 2019: The Times of India
From: Dipak Dash, Nov 13, 2019: The Times of India
Improper or unauthorised use of photograph of Prime Minister or President for promotion of trade and business may soon attract fine of Rs 1 lakh and repeat offence Rs 5 lakh and up to six months jail. Currently, the penalty for such offences including the improper use of national emblems such as the National Flag, Ashok Chakra, official seal of Parliament, Supreme Court etc is merely Rs 500 and there is no provision for higher fine for repeat offence.
The consumer affairs ministry has proposed these changes in the Emblem and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act. The current provision of meagre penalties for misuse of the emblems and names had hit the headlines after Paytm and Reliance Jio had used PM Narendra Modi’s photograph in their advertisements. Both the companies had tendered unconditional apologies for using the PM’s photograph.
In September 2016, Reliance Jio had given advertisements in all the leading newspapers having Modi’s photo to dedicate its 4G service to the government’s flagship Digital India programme. Similarly, on November 9, Paytm had welcomed the demonetisation decision through an advertisement with Prime Minister’s photograph and had urged people to start using its digital wallet service.
The proposed changes also put the onus on the defendant to prove that the any contravention or alteration was authorised by a competent authority. The changes will be made through Rules after considering the suggestions and objections, sources said.
See also
The National Symbols of India
