Themes

1927–today

The Blue Flag and Other Symbols

Blue flags, the wheel of the Dhamma, the Buddhist flag, 'Jai Bhim', the statue with the Constitution, and Deekshabhoomi

Indian Buddhists carrying blue flags at the Sangharsha Shanti Morcha in Jalna, Maharashtra, in 2016.
Indian Buddhists carrying blue flags at the Sangharsha Shanti Morcha in Jalna, Maharashtra, in 2016. — Photo: Sandesh Hiwale (संदेश हिवाळे) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Walk into any Ambedkar Jayanti celebration (his birthday, 14 April) and you will see a sea of blue. People greet each other with “Jai Bhim”. A statue of a man in a blue suit, holding a book, points the way forward.

These symbols matter to millions of people. But not every story told about them is backed by records. Here we separate what old documents show from what people have come to believe.

What the old records say about blue

We found no speech or letter in which Dr. Ambedkar explains why he chose blue. Raosaheb Kasbe, a former professor at Pune University, has said there is no agreed history of how blue became the colour of Dalit protest 1.

What the records do show is that blue flags were already used by his organisations in his lifetime. They are described in two constitutions and in several newspaper and police reports from 1946 to 1951, all reprinted in the official Writings and Speeches volumes.

A flag used by Indian (Ambedkarite) Buddhists. Photographed in 2017.
A flag used by Indian (Ambedkarite) Buddhists. Photographed in 2017.Photo: Sandesh Hiwale (संदेश हिवाळे) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The Samata Sainik Dal flag

The Samata Sainik Dal (“Army of Soldiers for Equality”) was a volunteer corps that kept order at his meetings. Its volunteers were already at work in Bombay by 1932 2. Most accounts date its start to 1927 3.

Its written constitution was drafted in 1944 and sent to Dr. Ambedkar for approval 4. It describes the flag precisely 5:

  • Four feet long and two and a half feet wide.
  • “The whole ground of the flag will be deep blue”.
  • Eleven white stars in the top left corner, and a white sun in the middle.
  • The letters “S.C.F.” in blue under the sun, and “S.S.D.” in white in the bottom right corner.
  • Its meaning: “liberty, equality & fraternity and to fight to achieve our goal.”

The Scheduled Castes Federation flag

Dr. Ambedkar founded the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation at Nagpur on 19 July 1942 6. Its constitution, as amended and published in January 1955, says:

“The flag of the Federation shall consist of stars against a blue cloth cut in triangle.”

— Constitution of the All India Scheduled Castes Federation, Article XXVI 7

Reports from the time match this. On 17 February 1946 Dr. Ambedkar himself unfurled “the Scheduled Castes flag” at Nare Park, Bombay 8. In January 1950 processions carried “blue party flags” 9. In November 1951 a speaker praised the unity built “under the Blue Flag”, and a huge Shivaji Park rally was full of “blue star-studded flags of the Federation”, with volunteers in blue caps 10.

What about his first party, the Independent Labour Party (1936)? We could not find a reliable description of its flag.

The Republican Party: blue with a wheel

In September 1956 Dr. Ambedkar decided to turn the Federation into a new Republican Party 11. His followers launched it in October 1957, after his death 12. Its flag is blue with a white wheel, the Ashoka Chakra, in the centre 13 14. This is the “blue flag with the chakra” most people picture today. Many Indian Buddhists also fly it 15 16.

These are interpretations by later writers and activists, not recorded words of Dr. Ambedkar:

  • The sky. Blue is the colour of the sky, which covers everyone without discrimination 1 13.
  • His favourite colour. One activist says blue was his favourite colour 13.
  • His blue suit. Some say the suit in his portraits inspired the flag 1.
  • A Mahar flag. A 2017 paper, citing the historian Christophe Jaffrelot, says he made an older blue Mahar flag the flag of his Labour Party 1. We could not check this in Jaffrelot’s book.

The wheel: Ashoka Chakra and Dhamma Chakra

The wheel comes from the Lion Capital that Emperor Ashoka, a Buddhist ruler, set up at Sarnath in the third century BCE. On the national flag it is navy blue with 24 spokes 17. Buddhists call it the Dhamma Chakra, the “wheel of the teaching”. The Buddha’s first sermon is known as setting this wheel in motion 18.

On 23 June 1947 the Constituent Assembly set up a Flag Committee under Dr. Rajendra Prasad 19. Dr. Ambedkar was a member 20. The committee kept the Congress tricolour but replaced the spinning wheel (charkha) with Ashoka’s wheel. The Assembly adopted it on 22 July 1947 19.

How big was his part? Keer is careful. He reports only as hearsay that Dr. Ambedkar spoke up for the chakra 20. In 1950 he reminded an audience that free India had turned to Buddhism for the wheel on its flag 21. Claims that he alone chose or designed it are not supported by the records we found.

The Panchsheel (Buddhist) flag

The international Buddhist flag was designed by a committee in Colombo, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), in 1885. Its stripes are blue, yellow, red, white and orange, said to be the colours that shone from the Buddha after his enlightenment 22. The World Fellowship of Buddhists adopted it as the international flag in 1950 22. Dr. Ambedkar attended that first conference in Ceylon, from 25 May to 6 June 1950 23.

At his conversion in Nagpur on 14 October 1956, people streamed in “with Buddhist flags in the hands” 24. Indian Buddhists often call it the Panchsheel flag, after the Buddhist “five precepts” 25.

“Jai Bhim”

“Jai Bhim” means “Victory to Bhim”, from his name Bhimrao. Followers turned the national cry “Jai Hind” into “Jai Bhim”, and invitations say “Saprem Jai Bhim” (“Jai Bhim, with love”) 12. He accepted it, and replied to his followers with “Jai Bhim” at the end of his letters 20.

The greeting is usually credited to Babu Hardas L. N. (Laxman Nagrale, 1904–1939), a leader from Kamptee near Nagpur and a devoted follower of Dr. Ambedkar 26 27. BBC News, quoting the Dalit Panther co-founder J. V. Pawar, reports that Hardas asked Samata Sainik Dal volunteers to greet each other with “Jai Bhim” instead of older greetings like “Ram Ram” 27.

The statue in the blue suit

Most of his statues show him in a blue three-piece suit, holding the Constitution of India, with a finger pointing forward 1 13. Zelliot described the statue placed in the grounds of Parliament House the same way: the Constitution in one hand, the other hand pointing 12.

The image has deep meaning. Under caste rules, “untouchables” were often forbidden decent clothes 1. For many followers, the suit says: equal, educated, modern. The book is the Constitution he helped write. Zelliot noted that his popular pictures usually show him in a blue suit, with a book in his hand and a pen in his pocket 12.

The stupa at Deekshabhoomi

Deekshabhoomi (“land of initiation”) in Nagpur is where he became a Buddhist in 1956. Its great white dome was designed by the Nagpur architect Sheo Dan Mal 28. It was inaugurated by President K. R. Narayanan on 18 December 2001 29.

The dome is 36 metres across and, unusually for a stupa, hollow inside. The main hall measures about 64 by 64 metres 30. India Post put it on a stamp in 2017.

Where sources disagree

  • The Federation flag. Its constitution says “stars” on blue 7. S. R. Darapuri says it was blue with an Ashoka Chakra 13. 1950s reports describe “star-studded” flags, which supports the constitution.
  • “11 pointed stars”. The Dal constitution could mean eleven stars or stars with eleven points 5. We read it as eleven stars.
  • When “Jai Bhim” began. BBC gives 1935 27. The Wire says Hardas first used it in a speech at Kamptee in 1932 and spread it at Makranpur in 1938 31.
  • The 1947 Flag Committee. Chakrabarti says it had nine members 19; most lists name only six.
  • Buddhist flags at Nagpur, 1956. Keer describes flags striped in blue, red and green, which does not match the five-colour flag 20.
  • “Largest hollow stupa”. Some sources say in India, others in the world 30 32.

Read more

Sources

  1. SabrangIndia sabrangindia.in ↗ ↩
  2. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 85 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  3. Wikipedia (pointer) en.wikipedia.org ↗ ↩
  4. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 566 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  5. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 572 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  6. BAWS Vol. 17 Part II, p. 455 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  7. BAWS Vol. 17 Part II, p. 474 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  8. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 363 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  9. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 397 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  10. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, pp. 450, 456 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  11. BAWS Vol. 17 Part II, p. 152 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  12. Zelliot, From Untouchable to Dalit, p. 115 archive.org ↗ ↩
  13. The Week (PTI) theweek.in ↗ ↩
  14. Wikimedia Commons commons.wikimedia.org ↗ ↩
  15. Wikipedia – Buddhist flag (pointer) en.wikipedia.org ↗ ↩
  16. Wikimedia Commons photo commons.wikimedia.org ↗ ↩
  17. Bureau of Indian Standards services.bis.gov.in ↗ ↩
  18. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 552 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  19. Chakrabarti, FIAV fiav.org ↗ ↩
  20. Keer, Dr. Ambedkar: Life and Mission, p. 394 archive.org ↗ ↩
  21. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 402 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  22. Tricycle tricycle.org ↗ ↩
  23. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 404 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  24. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 545 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  25. Wikimedia Commons photo, Nagpur commons.wikimedia.org ↗ ↩
  26. BAWS Vol. 17 Part III, p. 15 Read this page on the site · Official PDF ↗ ↩
  27. BBC News Hindi bbc.com ↗ ↩
  28. OneIndia (UNI), 2007 oneindia.com ↗ ↩
  29. Times of India, 2001 timesofindia.indiatimes.com ↗ ↩
  30. India Post stamp text istampgallery.com ↗ ↩
  31. The Wire thewire.in ↗ ↩
  32. The Tribune, 2002 tribuneindia.com ↗ ↩

Key dates in this chapter

  1. The Buddhist flag is designed by a committee in Colombo, Ceylon (first flown on Vesak day) source
  2. Samata Sainik Dal volunteers manage the arrangements at one of his Bombay meetings Writings & Speeches
  3. Babu Hardas L. N. is said to coin the greeting 'Jai Bhim' (other accounts say 1932 or 1938) source
  4. The All-India Scheduled Castes Federation is founded at Nagpur Writings & Speeches
  5. Draft constitution of the Samata Sainik Dal, with its deep-blue flag, is sent to Dr. Ambedkar Writings & Speeches
  6. Dr. Ambedkar unfurls the Scheduled Castes flag at Nare Park, Bombay Writings & Speeches
  7. The Constituent Assembly sets up an ad hoc Flag Committee; Dr. Ambedkar is a member source
  8. The Constituent Assembly adopts the tricolour with the Ashoka Chakra source
  9. Processions carry 'blue party flags' to a Federation meeting at Nare Park, Parel Writings & Speeches
  10. Dr. Ambedkar attends the first World Fellowship of Buddhists conference in Ceylon, which adopts the Buddhist flag Writings & Speeches
  11. 'Blue star-studded flags of the Federation' at a Shivaji Park rally Writings & Speeches
  12. Amended Federation constitution: its flag is stars on a triangular blue cloth Writings & Speeches
  13. Conversion at Nagpur; people arrive carrying Buddhist flags Writings & Speeches
  14. President K. R. Narayanan inaugurates the stupa at Deekshabhoomi, Nagpur source
  15. India Post issues stamps showing the Deekshabhoomi stupa source
See the full timeline →
Cite this page

“The Blue Flag and Other Symbols: Blue flags, the wheel of the Dhamma, the Buddhist flag, 'Jai Bhim', the statue with the Constitution, and Deekshabhoomi.” Prabuddha Pathak — Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, in his own words, prabuddhapathak.com. https://prabuddhapathak.com/themes/flag-and-symbols/

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