The wheel of law has been knocked off its pedestal at Hazratbal. What should have been a celebration of faith turned into an unseemly episode of fury, vandalism, and misplaced zeal. A plaque carrying the national emblem Ashoka Chakra – that blue wheel of righteousness with its 24 spokes of virtue – was defiled by an angry crowd at Jammu and Kashmir’s most revered shrine on Eid-e-Milad.
First things first. The Ashoka Chakra is not a religious symbol. It does not belong to Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Sikhism, or to any faith as such. It represents law, 24-carat dharma, and justice. Its 24 spokes are not a call to prayer but a call to conscience – embodying courage, compassion, honesty, restraint, wisdom, humility, and so forth. Which religion would not embrace these? Where is the quarrel? And why would anyone, least of all at a place of devotion, desecrate it?
But vandalism seldom waits for logic. It pounces on symbols and, in this case, on the national emblem.
Politics over plaque
J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was quick to remark that the national emblem should not have been used at a religious place. He wondered aloud: ‘What was the compulsion to have the emblem on the stone at Hazratbal Shrine?’ A fair question, perhaps, but hardly a justification for mob action.
The state BJP unit, meanwhile, has demanded strict action against the accused, with its leader and Waqf Board chairperson Dr Darakshan Andrabi calling the vandalism nothing short of a ‘terrorist attack’. She accused political goons of orchestrating the ruckus and even claimed the mob attacked shrine administrators.
Former CM Mehbooba Mufti, in contrast, rushed to defend the miscreants: ‘They acted out of emotion… this is blasphemy, not terrorism’, she said, arguing no case should be filed under the Public Safety Act. Emotion, apparently, now serves as legal tender for lawlessness.
The X factor
On X (formerly Twitter), the matter spiralled into a broader debate. Commentator Anand Ranganathan wrote starkly: ‘The Ashoka emblem represents India, not God; it is an ideal, not an idol. And yet it is being smashed.’ He added, invoking Ambedkar, that faith should not be placed above nationhood.
One user, @TonyTwitching, contrasted the Indian scene with Indonesia: ‘The national emblem of Indonesia, the Garuda Pancasila, is frequently displayed on mosques, churches & temples throughout the country, despite Indonesia being a Muslim-majority nation.’ Indonesia, incidentally, also puts Lord Ganesha’s image on its currency and proudly flies Garuda – Vishnu’s mount – as its national airline. No controversy there.
Others added their takes:
@quietlyconserve: ‘It’s not really about Islam. It’s about political will and strict implementation of the law. No one should dare to desecrate a national emblem.’
@SuriAshwin: “There is a different Islam only in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Rest follow rule of land.’
@chiraggg403: ‘Garuda is still connected with Hinduism and yet Indonesians take pride in it. Imagine if Garuda were our symbol here.’
@RDD5862233: ‘In Malaysia, Islam coexists peacefully with other faiths due to its history of Islamization. India can learn from this.’
And then the inevitable cynicism: @Manu075300721 called it all the ‘virus of secularism’.
The wheel turned upside down
Lost in this fray is a simple truth. National emblems are not objects of worship. No one bows before the Ashoka Chakra or garlands the Lion Capital. They are guides, not gods. Their place is above faith, not in conflict with it.
The Hazratbal vandalism was not a strike against a stone plaque. It was a strike against the very idea that India, in its plurality, can be united under common ideals. By smashing the emblem, the mob signalled intolerance not just toward a symbol but toward the spirit of coexistence.
Yes, as Omar Abdullah noted, perhaps the emblem need not have been placed at a shrine. But that administrative oversight does not license mob fury. If emotions can justify vandalism, tomorrow, emotions will justify arson, murder, and treason.
The wheel of law was carved to remind us that dharma, not dogma, sustains a nation. Its 24 spokes tell us that integrity is indivisible. It is time those who raise slogans and those who defend vandalism realised that integration into Indian society means respecting its emblems – not desecrating them. The wheel has been knocked over. The law must now put it back in place.
