Farooq Abdullah reacts to Centre's 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign: 'Keep it in your house'

Srinagar: Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and National Conference founder Farooq Abdullah has strongly reacted to the Centre’s announcement to launch the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga` campaign this month. The veteran NC leader said that it (the Tiranga) should be kept in one’s house. "Keep it (the Tiranga) in your house," said Abdullah, when asked about the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga` campaign, reported ANI.

The remarks from the senior J&K politician came after the Union Ministry of Culture announced its plan to launch the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ program, which envisages inspiring Indians everywhere to hoist the national flag at their home.  The aim of the program is to make the relationship with the national flag a more personal one rather than just keeping it formal or institutional.

The idea behind the initiative is to invoke the feeling of patriotism in the hearts of the people and promote awareness about the tri-colour, the Culture Ministry said.

Abdullah also requested people to celebrate ‘Eid’ safely and informed them that the opposition`s presidential candidate would visit the Valley on July 9. " I would request everyone to celebrate the festival of Eid safely. Yes, Yashwant Sinha would be coming on the 9th of this month. He will be addressing a press conference as well," he added.

Abdullah’s ‘Tiranga’ remark came just days after he claimed that the person who pointed out the presence of a `Shivling` in the Amarnath cave was a Muslim man.

What Is ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ Campaign?

The Union Culture Ministry recently said that it is going to launch the `Har Ghar Tiranga` campaign this month, marking India`s 75th Independence Day. The date and venue will be announced soon, an official of the Culture Ministry told ANI.  As part of the campaign, all the citizens will be encouraged to hoist the tricolour at their homes during Independence week from 11th-17th August 2022. The official said that the Indian National Flag is a symbol of national pride for the entire nation, and the people of the nation should pay their utmost respect and reverence to the flag.

"The Initiative will inspire the public to hoist the national flag in their homes. The idea behind the initiative is to invoke the feeling of patriotism in the hearts of the people," she added. 

The official further told ANI that our relationship with the flag has always been more formal and institutional than personal. Bringing the flag home collectively as a nation in the 75th year of independence thus becomes symbolic of not only an act of personal connection to the `Tiranga` but also an embodiment of our commitment to nation-building.

"Ministry of Culture is Nodal Agency for the `Har Ghar Tiranga` campaign and Ministry will seek help from State Governments to mobilize all resources, housing and urban development departments and local bodies including municipal bodies and Panchayati Raj institutions for furthering the goals of the campaign," the official added.