The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre to respond within two weeks on a plea seeking a ban on hoisting of green flags with a crescent and a star on it at religious places and events across the country.
Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board Chairman, Syed Waseem Rizvi, had filed a plea in the apex court on April 17, last year, seeking to ban hoisting such flags atop buildings and religious places, stating they are “un-Islamic”.
“I hereby appeal to the Supreme Court to immediately ban this green flag. The flag is not related to Islam. It is the flag of Pakistan’s Muslim League,” reads the petition. Rizvi also states that the use of the pre-Independence flag in Muslim areas often becomes a reason for misunderstanding and tensions between the two communities in the region.
“The green flag with crescent and star owes its origins to the erstwhile political party, the All-India Muslim League, which was founded by Nawaz Waqar Ul-Malik and Mohammad Ali Jinnah in 1906 in Dhaka,” said Rizvi. “However, in the present day, it is being used by Indian Muslims as an Islamic flag,” he said.
According to the petition, the flag represents the political parties of Pakistan Muslim League and Pakistan Muslim League (Qaid-e-Azam). It also states that the flag is not connected to Islam and in fact, all the people following the Prophet Muhammad used to represent black or white flags. A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi heard the plea.
Pak Connect
- The petitioner, chief of UP Shia Waqf Board, says the ‘flag’ often leads to misunderstanding
- The flag is not related to Islam. It is that of Pakistan’s Muslim League, alleges Waseem Rizvi
- The petition seeks a ban on hoisting such flags across India
Zee Media Newsroom
