(Top Flag is Present one by Surayya Badr-ud-Din-Tyabji and below it is the one designed by Pinkali Venkaiah)
• SUMMARY:
* The flag with spinning wheel was originally designed by Pingali Venkayya and the removal of spinning wheel and its suitable replacement with Ashoka Chakra was designed by Surayya Badr-ud-Din-Tyabji.
• INTRODUCTION:
* The controversy around the designer of the Indian national flag was instigated by Capt. L Panduranga Reddy, a historian, who first proposed that not Pingali Venkayya but "Surayya Tayyabji" is designer of Indian National flag.
* Mrs Surayya Badr-ud-Din Tyabji was born in 1919, in Hyderabad. Her husband Badrudin Tayabji was an ICS officer. Surayya Badr-ud-Din-Tyabji has been reported to be an artist and designer by Muslim Mirror. She reportedly died in 1978 in Mumbai.
• TIMELINE:
* 1904: The first ever flag for India was made by Irish Disciple of Swami Vivekananda, it had two colours red and yellow. Red denoted the freedom struggle and yellow symbolised victory. The flag had Vande Mataram written on it in Bengali. It also had a Vajra ( said to be the weapon of rain God Indra) and a white lotus at the center.
* 1907: A Flag has been designed but not published by Sachindra Prasad and Sukumar mitra.
* 1907: A flag designed by Madam Bhikaji Rustom Cama’s flag, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Shyamji Krishna Verma with Green, Yellow and Red in order and lotuses in green row, moon in left and sun in right in red row.
* 1916: A Flag with White at top(symbolising minorities), Green in middle(symbolising Muslims) and Red in bottom(symbolising Hindus) was designed by Pinkali Venkaiah, by the suggestion of Gandhi. (Congress refused to accept this, but this was actually widely used during independence)
* 1924: All India Sanskrit Congress suggested the inclusion of saffron and ‘Gadha’ of Lord Vishnu as the symbol of Hindus. Sikhs demanded inclusion of yellow colours.
* 02/04/1931: 'Flag Committee' appointed by Congress working committee passed a resolution saying "objection has been taken to the three colors in the flag on the ground that they are conceived on the communal basis." * 1931: Congress committee, Karachi passed a resolution that “The National Flag shall be three-colored, horizontally arranged as before, but the colors shall be saffron, white and green in that order from top to bottom, with the "spinning-wheel" in dark blue in the center of the white stripe; it being understood that the colors have no communal significance, but that saffron shall represent courage and sacrifice, white peace and truth, and green shall represent faith and chivalry, and the spinning wheel the hope of the masses."
(This was merely assumed to be designed by Pinkali Venkaiah, not substantiated by any written or oral references anywhere in the documents of any committees till parliamentary archives now)
* 06/08/1931: INC Officially adopted the Flag
(Tricolour flag with chakra/spinning wheel in centre)
* 31/08/1931: 'Flag day' was celebrated.
* 22/07/1947: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru proposed the flag of the Indian National Congress but instead of the Chakhra/spinning wheel, he proposed the Ashoka Chakra of the Lion emblem and resolution was passed by the Constituent Assembly.
(Followed till now, as we see the present Flag)
• REFERENCES & QUOTATIONS:
* "Truths about Tricolour" by Ramachandra Guha for The Hindu says, the next modification in the flag took place on the eve of Independence, a committee of the Constituent Assembly decided "..that the spinning wheel would be replaced by a Asoka Chakra"
* Gandhi advocated for keeping INC Flag as the National Flag itself, "Should not ‘the flag under which the Congress has fought so many non-violent battles … now be the flag of the Government of free India?’". Mr. Guha writes that " ..even though Gandhi was not happy about the change he was ultimately persuaded"
* Surayya Badr-ud-Din-Tyabji -- Laila Tyabji writes to 'The Wire' as below:
"Time was ticking along and everyone in the Committee (Nehru was keenly involved and extremely unhappy with the designs coming in) were getting a bit desperate, when suddenly, my parents had this brainwave of the lions and chakra on top of the Ashoka column. (They both loved the sculpture and ethos of that period). So, my mother drew a graphic version and the printing press at the Viceregal Lodge (now Rashtrapati Niwas) made some impressions and everyone loved it. Of course, the four lions (Lion Capital of Ashoka) have been our emblem ever since.
Meanwhile, without thinking too much about it, everyone had assumed that the Congress tricolour flag designed by Pingali Venkayya, with Gandhiji’s charkha in the middle, would be the national flag. Our independence struggle had been fought under its banner. However, there was opposition to a party flag representing the nation. So, my parents were tasked with re-doing the flag, and they took the same Ashoka chakra and put it on the tricolour. Once it was done, it all seemed so natural and obvious. Originally, my mother had painted a black chakra, but Gandhiji objected so it became navy blue"
* Suraiya Tyabji's name was in the list of members of the 'Flag Presentation Committee' who presented the national flag on Aug 14th, 1947, but it is nowhere mentioned that it was her design which was passed by the constituent assembly on July 22, 1947.
(Source: Parliamentary archive documents)
'Flag Foundation of India' an NGO set up by Congress leader and industrialist Naveen Jindal, "Suraiya Badr-ud-din Tyabji's design of the national flag was approved by the constituent assembly"
• CONCLUSIONS:
* There are 'few' who 'simply claim' that "Pinkali Venkaiah" was who designed the present National Flag as we see. But, they have no substantiative evidences, quotes or records to prove it, except simply assumed by public opinion. Whereas, on the other hand, there are lots of evidences, references and proofs to conclude that "Suraiya Badr-ud-din Tyabji" is the actually person behind the Flag we see today.
* When it comes to recording history, Indians are knows to tamper the record with favorable opinions, bias and inclinations towards regional & communal reasons. Clearly, an overshadow of work of a Muslim has been done by that 'few' group.
In that case, it's better we refer a third opinion or judgement.
* ‘The Last Days of Raj’ written by English Historian Trevor Royle, which says and claim that "By one of those contradictions which run through India's history, the national flag was designed by a Muslim, The flag which flew on Nehru's car that night had been specially made by 'Suraiya Badr-ud-din Tyabji', Badr-ud-din Tyabji's wife".
* Therefore, after various community representing designs published by extreme communal elements(including Gandhi), a final one was revised and published by 'Pinkali Venkaiah' under Gandhi's suggestion, unfortunately it also had indirect self projecting motives. When it was finally 'Suraiya Badr-ud-din Tyabji's design resolved in Constituent Assembly by Jawaharlal Nehru was finalised and till now we see, but yet, certain few keeps their views that 'Pinkali Venkaiah' was the actual designer, but fortunately it wasn't.
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