Hoisting of Indian Independence Flag at Germany in 1907
"This
flag is of Indian Independence! Behold, it is born! It has been made sacred by
the blood of young Indians who sacrificed their lives. I call upon you,
gentlemen to rise and salute this flag of Indian Independence. In the name of
this flag, I appeal to lovers of freedom all over the world to support this
flag." -- B. Cama
, Stuttgart, Germany, 1907.
These
were the emotional words of a frail Indian lady, with fire inside and
indomitable confidence and patriotic feeling for motherland, India. The
year was 1907 and the time, 3rd week of August. The Indian independence was 40
years away, and the world was not fully aware of the burning patriotism of
hundreds and thousands of young Indians who were ready to lay down their lives
for the sake of freedom for their country. The British were trying their best
to put down the revolutionaries by bringing in ordinances, bans and arrests for
life on the basis of treason. Treason was the greatest "crime" of the
Indian which ensured a minimum of six years of black waters (kalapani)
or deportation to Andaman and harsh punishment.
The
tricolor-flag Madam Cama
unfurled –as the picture above - had green, saffron, and red stripes. Red
represented strength, saffron victory, and green stood for boldness and
enthusiasm. There were eight lotuses representing the eight provinces and
flowers represented princely states. "Vande
Mataram"
in Devanagari adorned central saffron stripe which meant "salutation to
Mother India." The sun and the moon indicated Hindu and Muslim faiths. The
flag was designed by Veer Savarkar
with the help of other revolutionaries.
Where
is the Flag Now?
The
flag was smuggled into India by Indulal
Yagnik,
the socialist leader of Gujarat. It is now on public display at
the Maratha and Kesari
Library in Pune.
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