| In utter disrespect, tricolour continues to flutter even after dusk at CPMG Office | | It happens only in J&K! | | Kunal Shrivatsa
JAMMU, Jan 16: In what could be described as complete disrespect to national flag, the office of the Chief Post Master General (CPMG), J&K here in the heart of the city has failed to take down national tricolour allegedly for last two months thereby flouting the laid down rules under Flag Code of India, 2002 with impunity.
The disregard shown to national tricolour by none other than a premier Central Government organization is quite shocking and a cause of concern as it is least expected from a department like India Post to act irresponsibly and remain a mute spectator to a major lapse.
The serious mistake of not taking down the national flag was brought to the notice of Early Times by an awakened citizen, who owns a shop in close vicinity to the CPMG, J&K office complex.
Pleading anonymity he said, "When somebody informed me that the tricolor has not been brought down at the office of Chief Post Master General, J&K for almost two months, I decided to check it for myself… I too noticed the lapse a few days back and kept on observing ever since just to see that if anybody from the Postal Department rectify the mistake or not but to my utter surprise it was not to be and things remain the same till date."
"As a conscience citizen, finally I decided to highlight the issue through the medium of press and accordingly I contacted Early Times office," he added.
As soon as Early Times got the information today, this scribe along with his lensman Naresh Bhagat reached the office of CPMG, J&K at 5 pm and clicked a photograph of the national flag flying near the main entrance of the complex.
Early Times team again visited the place at 6 pm and remained stationed there for five minutes in order to check whether the tricolour will be brought down or not but nobody came and the national flag was flying full mast so late in the evening. Again, few shots were taken by the Early Times camera person to validate our story.
Meanwhile, legal experts informed Early Times that while it is mandatory to bring down the national flag after the sunset irrespective of the weather condition, the authorities at the CPMG are rather inattentive to the grave mistake being committed for the months together.
"The protocol demands that the flag goes down with sunset and goes up with sunrise and there is no provision that it can be left fluttering after the dusk or at night… It is indeed an insult to the national flag to keep it hoisted at night that too for the last two months …. The issue needs to be looked into at the earliest," they said.
"It is really distressing that office of the Chief Post Master General has disrespected the national flag though being a Government organization it should have acted conscientiously to bring down the flag after sunset," they added.
What Flag Code of India, 2002 says:
The Part II of Flag Code of India, 2002 under heading Hoisting/Display/Use of National Flag by Members of Public, Private Organizations, Educational Institutions, clearly mentions in Section I, Rule 2.2, Sub Rule (xi), "where the Flag is displayed in open, it should, as far as possible, be flown from sunrise to sunset, irrespective of weather conditions."
While Part III of Flag Code of India, 2002 under heading Hoisting/display of the national flag by the Central and State Governments and their organizations and agencies say in Section III, Rule 3.6, "Where the practice is to fly the Flag on any public building, it shall be flown on that building on all days including Sundays and holidays and, except as provided in this Code, it shall be flown from sun-rise to sun-set irrespective of weather conditions. The Flag may be flown on such a building at night also but this should be only on very special occasions." |
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