Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday downplayed the controversy surrounding PDP President Mehbooba Mufti allegedly displaying the national flag upside down, expressing his belief that the incident was an unintentional error rather than a calculated action.

The dispute arose after People's Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti was observed carrying an inverted national flag during a demonstration in Srinagar on Tuesday evening.

Mehbooba headed party officials and activists in a sit-in outside the PDP headquarters to voice opposition against the central government's revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special autonomous status via the repeal of Article 370 and Article 35A in August 2019.

Speaking to journalists during an inspection of the flood-affected Surankote tehsil in Poonch district, Abdullah remarked that he could not believe a former chief minister would intentionally invert the national emblem.

"You have to ask this question to her (Mehbooba). I believe the incident involving the national flag must have been a mistake. I cannot accept that someone who has served as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir would deliberately display the national flag upside down," Abdullah stated.

The chief minister noted that if the flag was displayed incorrectly by accident, the oversight should simply be conceded.

"I do not think it was done intentionally," he added.

Throughout the protest, Mehbooba held both the Indian national flag and the banner of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the national flag was mistakenly positioned upside down.

Improper presentation of the national tricolour—including inverted colours, incorrect dimensions, or damaged material—breaches the Flag Code of India.

Under statutory guidelines, the uppermost band must consistently feature saffron, the central band white, incorporating a 24-spoke navy blue Ashoka Chakra, and the bottom band green.

PTI