SC seeks Centre’s stand on plea to ban hoisting green flags

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Monday sought the Centre’s stand on a plea by a cleric seeking a ban on hoisting green flags with a crescent and star, terming it un-Islamic and resembling that of a Pakistani political party.

A bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Ashok Bhushan asked Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, to seek instructions from the government on the issue and posted it for hearing after two weeks.

"Take instructions on what’s the stand of the government. Sometime it would be difficult for the government… They would be blamed that they are taking mala fide action. Now the matter is with the court, they can take instructions," the bench said.

The court asked the petitioner to serve a copy of the petition to Mehta in order to take instruction from the Centre.

The court was hearing a plea filed by the Syed Waseem Rizvi, Chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Board of Waqfs, allegeding that the flags hoisted resembled the flags of the Pakistan Muslim League, which belongs to "enemy country".

Senior advocate S.P. Singh, appearing for Rizvi, told the court that during the petitioner’s visit to Mumbai, Hyderabad, Karnataka and other places in the country, he saw flags on several buildings and religious structures, which were allegedly a cause of tension between Hindu and Muslim communities.

Such flags were being hoisted in Muslim-dominated areas with utmost impunity and the crescent and star in a green backdrop have never been part of any Islamic practice and does not have any role or significance in Islam, claimed the plea.

The petition stated that the crescent star flags in green colour owes its origins to the erstwhile Muslim League, founded by Nawab Viqar ul-Mulk and Mohammad Ali Jinnah in 1906. But now, it was being used by Indian Muslims who were treating it as an Islamic flag.