Title: Demanded to constitute a committee to review the fact as to why the Ashoka Chakra in the National Flag has 24 spokes while the original chakra contains 32 spokes.
DR. RANJIT KUMAR PANJA (BARASAT): Mr. Deputy-Speaker, Sir, there are a lot of arguments on the 16th August regarding unfurling of the National Flag on the 15th August. I shall be talking today about the flag itself and as to what the condition of the flag is. I have seen throughout the country that the colours of the flags are fading; even the white portion is off-white. But I am going to concentrate on the Chakra.
In the Constituent Assembly, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, in a memorable speech, explained why the Chakra was chosen instead of the Charkha, the flag of the Congress. The Chakra, if it were depicted from the reverse side, would look odd. So, only the wheel portion was taken and the best wheel available in the country was the Ashoka wheel, Ashoka being the greatest of all kings of India.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Now, you come to the point. What do you immediately want to bring to the notice of the Government?
⌠(Interruptions)
DR. RANJIT KUMAR PANJA (BARASAT): I want to convey that the Ashoka Chakra should have been depicted in toto, in its true form. The Ashoka Chakra has 32 spokes but in our National Flag it has only 24 spokes. Was it an error by the artist or was it overlooked for the last 54 years? Would the Government desire to form a Committee to review this because the National Flag is an emblem and a symbol of the country?
