National Emblem Row

Key Takeaways

• India adopted a national emblem on Jan 26, 1950.
• The emblem is based on The Lion Capital of Ashoka, found in Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh.
• The emblem is said to be of great significance, accounts of which vary from historian to historian.
• The current controversy involves the new structure of The National Emblem and the discrepancies in its design.
• The ruling party leaders deny any such anomalies, while the opposition claims that these new changes are an “insult” to the emblem.
• The State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005, and the State Emblem of India (Regulation of Use) Rules, 2007 deal with the use of The National Emblem.

Introduction

The recent talk of different perspectives involving the shape of a structure being manipulated by light, height, and angle is bizarre. What’s more bizarre is that top politicians of the country have chosen to partake in this discussion. So, what exactly is the structure in question? Why is it so important and what is its significance? Moreover, where does the controversy lie, and does it fall under the purview of the law? This article will pick apart the various layers of the National Emblem Row.

History

India adopted a national emblem on Jan 26, 1950, after independence. The first graphic representation to be adopted as the national emblem was black and white. The Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath was modified to make the final state emblem. The Lion Capital, a sculpture of four Asiatic lions standing back-to-back, was originally placed on top of the pillar at Sarnath by the great Mauryan emperor Ashoka in about 250 BCE. It stands 2.15 meters (7.1 ft) tall. Together with a Dharma Chakra, the Buddhist wheel of law in the centre, a bull on the right, and a galloping horse on the left it was adopted as the state emblem of the country. Historians believe that the Dharma Chakra was included because Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh. A motto inscribed below the abacus in Devanagari script says: “Satyameva Jayate” It’s a quote taken from Mundaka Upanishad which says Truth Alone Triumphs.

After independence in 1947, leaders were looking for a symbol to present the free new nation, a national emblem. Badruddin Tyabji, a freedom fighter, and his wife Surayya Tyabji use the Lion Capital for the same, owing to its powerful meaning. When the Constitution was being drafted, Dinanath Bhargava, an Indian Painter was appointed to design the National Emblem from strict, using the Lion Capital as inspiration. Under the mentorship of Nandalal Bose, a pioneer of Indian art, Bhargava sketched the Emblem directly onto the first page of the Constitution.

Originally, the whole structure rested on a bell-shaped, inverted lotus, the national flower of India. However, this is base is not part of the national emblem. This Structure was exacted in Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh by the Archaeological Survey of India in 1905. The man behind the operation was Friedrich Oscar Oertel.

Mauryan Emperor Ashoka originally installed The Lion Capital in 250 BCE on top of the famous Ashoka Pillar, which is still preserved in its original location.

Significance of the emblem

The emblem has four Asiatic lions mounted back-to-back on the frieze of the abacus, facing four different directions. Each of these lions signifies the different virtues of a warrior, namely confidence, courage, pride, and power. A circular abacus on which the lions are mounted is adorned with intricate engravings of a bull, a horse, and an elephant. Some historians believe that the animals, including the lions, were considered to be guardians of the four directions. The lion was said to protect the north, elephant- the east, horse-the south, and bull-the west. However, other historians believe that these animals represent the four stages of Gautam Buddha’s life- Birth, Insight, Enlightenment, and death. Since Lions have been placed on top of the pedestal, it is believed that the lions represent the stage of enlightenment. The bull symbolizes Taurus, Gautam Buddha’s astrological sign. The elephant denotes his outset. The horse symbolizes his journey out of the citadel, after giving his first sermon.

There is a dharmachakra or an Ashok chakra between the animals engraved onto the base. The chakra has 24 spokes which represent each hour of the day and thus, represent the passage of time.

Controversy

The controversy came to light after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the newly forged cast of the National Emblem on top of the new Parliament Building. The ceremony attended by Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, Union ministers Hardeep Puri and Pralhad Joshi, and Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh, revealed the 9500 kg bronze structure, which stood 6.5 m high.

However, soon after the reveal, opposition leaders and historians took to Twitter and expressed their disapproval of the same. The dissidents claimed that unlike the original, the newly unveiled structure showed “aggressive” and “muscular” Ashoka lions “baring their fangs”. They further claimed that the structure thus seems hostile.

Congress called out the “deviations” in the design as a blatant “insult” to the national emblem. Congress MP Jairam Ramesh took to Twitter and said-, “To completely change the character and nature of the lions on Ashoka’s pillar at Sarnath is nothing but a brazen insult to India’s national symbol!”

Response of the designers

The sculpture was designed by sculptors Sunil Deore from Aurangabad and Laxman Vyas from Jaipur who worked tirelessly for months to design the mammoth cast of the national emblem. Upon being asked about the unwelcome changes, Deore told news channel NDTV that there is “no deviation” in design. “We’ve paid attention to detail. The character of lions is the same. There may be very minor differences. People may have different interpretations. It’s a large statue, and a view from below may give a distorted impression,” Further said “The Emblem atop the new Parliament is meant to be viewed from at least 100m away. So, the detailing on the sculpture had to be designed in a way that it is visible from such a distance,”. He also expressed his disappointment over the outrage. He expressed that his devotion to the project was unparalleled and thus, the backlash has not only upset him but deeply hurt him.

Government’s Response

While the official response from the government on the same is still awaited, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri took to Twitter and defended the sculpture. He said “Sense of proportion & perspective. Beauty is famously regarded as lying in the eyes of the beholder. So is the case with calm & anger. The original #Sarnath #Emblem is 1.6 meters high whereas the emblem on the top of the #New Parliament Building is huge at 6.5 meters height,”.

BJP’s chief spokesperson Anil Baluni implied that the real motivations of the opposition are impure and questionable by commenting that the real reason behind the Opposition’s allegation was its built-up frustration over India creating a new Parliament building under the aegis of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.

The Purview of the Indian Law

Laws namely -The State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005, and the State Emblem of India (Regulation of Use) Rules, 2007, deal with any improper use or representation of state emblem in our country.

The law propounds that the State Emblem of India is an adaptation of the Sarnath Lion Capital of Asoka, which is preserved in the Sarnath Museum. It further lays out the guidelines and designs that the State Emblem of India shall conform to, mentioned in Appendix I or Appendix II of the Acts.

Section 6 of the law, in particular, deals with the general powers of the Central Government to regulate the use of the emblem. Section 6(2)(f) of The State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005, lays out the powers of the centre over the “specification of design of the emblem and its use in the manner whatsoever”.

The section says explains that the Central Government possesses powers to do all such things (including the specification of design of the emblem and its use in the manner whatsoever) as the Central Government considers necessary or expedient for the exercise of the foregoing powers.

The State Emblem of India (Regulation of Use) Rules, 2007, on the other hand, contain the guidelines regulating the use of the state emblem of India in the official seal and on stationery and its design.

Conclusion

What will follow the debacle stays ambiguous. This is still a developing story. However, the nation’s most prominent politicians wasting breath over something as minuscule and possibly insignificant is comical, to say the least. The elected authorities, throwing away time and resources to argue over incomprehensible details of the national symbol is an amusing irony with the nation falling apart in the background.