Kannada flag may get official state flag status; legal framework to be discussed in Belagavi session
Chief Minister D K Shivakumar says the government will draft rules and protocols for the red-and-yellow flag, including how it is flown alongside the national flag.
Karnataka is preparing to give the red-and-yellow Kannada flag official status as the state flag, Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said on Sunday after the 71st Kannada Rajyotsava celebrations at Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.
He said the legal and policy framework, including rules on how the flag is displayed alongside the national flag, is likely to be taken up during the winter session of the legislature in Belagavi. The government is also considering making the flag's display mandatory in government offices and in institutions that receive state support, and encouraging private establishments to fly it.
Shivakumar recalled that the state cabinet had earlier approved a proposal and sent it to the Centre, but official recognition has not yet come. "We will prepare the necessary legal provisions, guidelines and protocols for official recognition of the state flag," he said.
Speaking about Belagavi, the chief minister appealed to both Kannada and Marathi-speaking residents to respect the law and keep the peace, and asked Kannada organisations not to resort to violence or target businesses in the name of the language. He added that officials have been told to begin withdrawing cases filed against Kannada activists.
Source: Deccan Herald. Photo: Shashidhar hatti / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
