BS Yeddyurappa reacted to Congress’ accusation that his party was mum on the new state flag which was unveiled by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday.

The Congress had on Friday questioned the BJP’s “silence” on official state flag for Karnataka.

“Lacking in #KannadaSwabhimana, @BJP4Karnataka maintains pin drop silence on #KarnatakaStateFlag. Will BJP MPs & Shri Yeddyurappa put pressure on the Union BJP Government to quickly grant the necessary approvals?” read a tweet on the official handle of the Karnataka Congress on Friday.

Addressing reporters, Yeddyurappa countered by demanding the resignation of Siddaramaiah questioning the intention behind introducing the flag now.

“Siddaramaiah should resign immediately on moral grounds. Why did he come up with a flag in 4th year of his regime? If he wanted to have a state flag he could’ve done it earlier,” said BS Yeddyurappa, adding that he will be asking Governor Vajubhai Vala for President’s rule.

Meanwhile, a government official said that there is no precedent of any state in India having a separate flag, barring Jammu-Kashmir which enjoys a special status, but the Constitution does not provide for or against it.

The Flag Code of India and the State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act refer only to the Tricolour and there is no mention of any other flag, the official told PTI requesting anonymity.

Jammu-Kashmir has a separate flag because of the special status it enjoys under Article 370 of the Constitution.

The official insisted India as a nation has only one flag, and there will be “chaos” if tomorrow some states or some districts or some villages start seeking separate flags.

When asked for a comment, a Home Ministry spokesperson said, “We have not received any such proposal from the Karnataka government (yet) so it is premature to say anything on the subject.”

The ‘Naada Dwaja’ (state’s flag) unveiled by Siddaramaiah has three stripes of colours yellow, white and red with the state’s emblem ‘Ganda Berunda’, a two-headed mythological bird, at its centre.

The old Karnataka flag was a bi-colour one containing only red and yellow and no emblem. The flag was, however, an unofficial one and was used usually by pro-Kannada outfits.

The flag was designed as per the recommendations of a committee headed by eminent Kannada writer Hampa Nagarajaiah.

Since a separate state flag requires the approval of the Centre, Siddaramaiah said that his government will send a proposal to New Delhi after the state Cabinet approves of the flag.

He defended Karnataka’s flag on the ground that the Constitution does not bar state flags and all states can have their own flags.

(With inputs from agencies.)