Tripura polls: The flags tell a story of their own

Political party flags have been at the core of the Tripura elections, more so as a political subject and subject of discourse. Amid fluttering flags in a mild mid-February Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an election rally in state capital Agartala referred to the previous communist regime as the “jhanda (flag) wala” government and the people of the state have shown the “red card” to such a government.

The Left Front’s red crescent-and-sickle flags mingled with the Congress’s hand-and-Tiranga ones in the crowd, a rare and first in the state. The united colours of both parties have been a constant subject of debate and political discourse throughout the campaign season of the state.

The Tipra Motha flag with the Queen Pineapple definitely added a new flavour and dimension to the February 16 election, making it a vibrant, triangular, and juicy contest.

However, what fancied this reporter’s attention while covering the Tripura election was that all these flags were “grounded”. All the party flags were erected in the ground on bamboo poles and not more than four feet above the ground. All lanes, roads, and choumuni (square) were adorned with these flags on both sides of the road in unending queues. They provide symmetry to the political algorithm and elaborate the decorum of the festival of diplomacy. The capital city was literally devoid of any festoon, banners dangling across streets, posters pasted on walls and poles, and any sort of graffiti written across the walls of shutters. Basically, all that was there, were these flags fluttering four feet above the ground.

The poll protocol laid down by the Election Commission says that no political party or candidate shall permit its or his followers to make use of any individual’s land, building, compound wall, etc, without his permission for erecting flag staffs, suspending banners, pasting notices, writing slogans, etc.

The unique feature of this flag culture in the Tripura election this time is that flags of all parties were seen together. Fluttering together without disturbing each other. A character which the ruling BJP claims to be due to the prevailing ambience of peace in the state under its rule.

“I have seen that flags of all parties fly together here and are put on the ground. This is due to the effort of our government which ushered in peace and brotherhood in the state in the last five years,” said Ranjit Das, Assam minister and incharge of two constituencies of Tripura.

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