Why Can’t Karnataka Have Its Own Flag, Asks Chief Minister Siddaramaiah

"Is there any provision in the constitution that prohibits a state from having a flag,” asks Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, as he defends his government’s decision to look at the possibilities of having a separate flag for the state.

As reported by ANI, the Karnataka government has constituted a nine-member committee to submit a report on the possibility of designing a separate flag for the state. This committee was formed after Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha president Patil Puttappa and social worker Bheemappa Gundappa Gadada submitted a representation to the state asking for a separate flag to be designed for Kannada ‘naadu’ and for it to be accorded statutory standing.

This is not the first time the flag issue has been raised in the state. Five years ago, the Bharatiya Janata Party had rejected the suggestion for a flag, on the grounds that it would work against the unity and integrity of the country.

"The Flag Code does not allow flags for states. Our national flag is the symbol of integrity and sovereignty of our nation. If states have their separate flags, it could diminish the importance of the national flag. Besides, there are possibilities of it leading to narrow-minded regional feelings," said the then Kannada and culture minister Govind M Karjol, as quoted by The Times of India.

At present, only the state of Jammu and Kashmir, with its special status under Article 370 of the Constitution, is permitted to have a flag of its own.