Pawan Khera slams BJP over social media post showing National Emblem at PM Modi's 'feet'

A BJP Goa's post celebrating ISRO's EOS-05 satellite launch with a graphic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the national emblem has turned into a political row as Congress leader Pawan Khera called for strict legal action against state's unit, stating that the graphic they shared placed a "minimised, camouflaged" image of India's national emblem beneath a depiction of PM, calling it an insult to a national symbol.

In an X post, Khera said, "Placing a minimised, camouflaged image of our national emblem at the feet of a compromised and increasingly unpopular PM is an insult to our national symbol."

He added that "no individual is above the emblem" and said the act "deserves to be widely condemned—including by those within the BJP."

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"The national emblem represents the Republic of India, not the political or personal fortunes of any party. Strict legal action must be taken against those responsible," he said.

Khera was reacting to a post by the BJP's Goa unit marking the successful launch of ISRO's EOS-05 satellite.

The post read, "ISRO's EOS-05 is now in orbit, giving India a sharper eye from space and strengthening our ability to monitor, respond and stay ahead," accompanied by a stylised graphic titled "Bharat Spacemaxxing," showing a meditating figure of PM Modi seated before a rocket launch, with a small representation of the national emblem placed at the base of the image.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully deployed the EOS-05 Earth observation satellite in the geosynchronous orbit from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Friday, marking another major milestone in India's space programme.

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The launch took place from the Second Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR. The launch was carried out on a GSLV-F17 rocket, which is the 19th flight of India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), as it carried EOS-05 towards a Sub-Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (Sub-GTO).

The mission attracted considerable public interest, with students, teachers and space enthusiasts gathering at Sriharikota to witness the launch. Despite rain, people remained at the launch-viewing area, eager to watch the rocket lift off.

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EOS-05 is a state-of-the-art Earth observation spacecraft and is significant for being India's first imaging satellite intended for placement in a geosynchronous orbit. From such an orbit, the satellite is designed to provide repeated observations of large areas of the Earth and provide information related to weather, agricultural updates, among others.