Srinagar: National flag was hoisted atop the historic Clock tower in city’s Lal Chowk on Wednesday, 30 years after veteran BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi did it for the first time in 1992.
Social activists Sajid Yousuf Shah and Sahil Bashir Bhat along with dozens of supporters had organized the flag hoisting ceremony at Clock Tower, locally known as Ghanta Ghar, to mark the Republic Day.
The activist used a hydraulic crane elevator to install the national flag on top of the clock tower amidst rendition of the national anthem.
Young players from Kashmir Martial Arts Academy also participated in the function.
The participants danced to patriotic songs as hundreds of Police and paramilitary personnel stood guard around the clock tower.
A local who was part of the gathering said “It makes me feel good that national flag was unfurled on top of Ghanta Ghar for the first time in Srinagar.”
On the occasion, Sahil Bashir said hoisting the tricolor on top of Ghanta Ghar on Independence Day was like a dream come true. He said attempts were also made in the past but some ‘unscrupulous’ elements always acted as a stumbling block.
“We changed the history and this what Naya Kashmir stands for, today our dream comes true as some unscrupulous elements wanted Pakistani national flag to be hoisted on Ghanta Ghar. They thwarted many such attempts in past for their vested interests, but we did this and proved that we are nationalists,” said he.
Senior BJP leader Joshi had hoisted the national flag at Lal Chowk in 1992 at the peak of militancy in the valley.
Elsewhere in the city, thousands of tricolors donned the landscape of several public parks including Pratap Park and Iqbal Park to mark the Republic Day.
This is for the first time that the national flag in such large numbers have been installed in the city.
