From BJP workers to the common man on the street, there is a rise in the display of saffron on the streets

Over three months have passed since Uttar Pradesh got a new government under the BJP but not much has changed in Navneet Shukla’s life. He still ekes out a hand-to-mouth existence, riding a cycle-rickshaw for livelihood. Everything is the same, except his gamcha (scarf).

A few weeks after the BJP came to power, 25-year-old Shukla replaced his white gamcha with a saffron one. Though he considers the colour attractive, the shift to saffron has more to do with survival on the rough streets than politics.

‘Feel more secure’

“I feel more secure with it, people don’t misbehave with me. Usually policemen treat us badly and chase us away. With a saffron gamcha, there is less gundai. Everybody is wearing it,” said Shukla.

A little further down the road at Lucknow’s posh Hazratganj market, where Shukla is waiting for passengers, 40-year-old Ram Kailash Jaiswal has parked his rickshaw. Like Shukla, he, too, sports a saffron gamcha. His is wrapped around the head like a turban.

Jaiswal bought the gamcha from a shop at Aminabad market recently. But unlike Shukla, he said it had nothing to do with the BJP coming to power or with getting respect from the policeman on the street.

The Bahraich-native said he has never attended a political rally in his life and only votes during the local pradhan elections. “White gamchas get stained easily, not saffron. Besides, the store was mostly selling saffron gamchas and this one caught my eye,” said Jaiswal.

Their motives may vary but saffron gamchas have really caught on in UP after the Yogi Adityanath government came to power.

Be it BJP workers and Hindu Yuva Vahini activists or the common citizen on the street selling bhuttaor pakoras or driving an e-rickshaw, there is an evident increase in the display of saffron on the streets. It is also visibly the most dominant colour at stores and stalls that sell political material.

Not unique

It’s common for colours and symbols of a party to become more prominent after it comes to power in UP. During the previous Samajwadi Party government, people sported red (the SP’s colour) caps or used the party flag on cars.

So the current upsurge in saffron is not unique. But what makes it intriguing is that it is being linked directly to Mr. Adityanath, who has a penchant for the colour.

Not only does he dress fully in saffron and dons a saffron scarf, saffron seat covers, saffron towels and saffron upholstery have become quite common at government functions and meetings involving him.

“Most people who ask for saffron gamchas are supporters of Mr. Adityanath,” said Rakesh Yadav, who sells BJP party material outside the party headquarters in Lucknow.

Yadav runs a tea shop outside the office and only started the stall a few months ago after sensing a rise in demand. Among the popular items are saffron topis, saffron gamchas, saffron coats, saffron badges, framed photos of Mr. Adityanath and car flags.

A customer at the shop said he bought a saffron gamcha only because it would help him secure a better hearing in the BJP office, especially from lower-rung office-bearers. “When they see the gamcha, they think twice before rejecting me,” he said, not willing to be named.

“The youth are influenced by Yogiji. They are also inspired to wear saffron after he came to power,” said Satya Prakash Chauhan, a member of the Vishwa Hindu Mahasangh, an international Hindu federation of which Mr. Adityanath is the India vice president.

A police constable outside the Vidhan Sabha has also noticed a remarkable rise in saffron markers since the BJP came to power. He said the dominant political colour is often used a symbol of impunity and patronage.

“The youth want to signal to us that their party and leader are in power now. They are trying to say ‘Respect us’,” said the constable.