National Emblem in Parliament: The opposition found fault with the national Emblem, BJP denied the charge

NEW DELHI: Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the Ashoka Symbol on the rooftop of new Parliament building in the national capital, the Opposition parties have trained guns at the Centre and are accusing it of fiddling with the national symbols.

The Ashoka emblem is an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Emperor Ashoka at Sarnath.

Rival parties have objected to the 'altered design' of the iconic structure and blamed the Center for mounting 4 lions worshipers on the national symbol, which is different from the Lion Capital at Sarnath.

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Hours after Opposition leaders claimed that the Centre had insulted the national emblem by installing an aggressive and disproportionate likeness of the Lion Capital of Ashoka atop the new Parliament building in Delhi, the sculptor of the 9.5-tonne cast, Sunil Deore, said no one influenced its making.

“The cast is a replica of the sculpture at Sarnath. We studied the original sculpture before starting the project,” Deore said.

“We tried to keep in mind the exact proportions. The original structure is 3 to 3.5 feet high, but the new one is 21.3 feet tall,” he said.

Dior said the expression varied significantly from different angles, and the photos, widely shared on social media, were taken from below, so the expressions appeared aggressive and the mouth large.

“I did not receive the contract directly from the government. I was given the contract by Tata Project Limited,” the sculptor said.

He said it took nine months to complete the project.

The artist said the structure had to be partially completed as it weighed around 9,500 kg and the finishing touches were done on site. The steel structure supporting the emblem weighs around 6,500 kg.