New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the decision to replace the Indian hockey team’s traditional blue jersey with a saffron-coloured kit for the upcoming FIH Hockey World Cup, alleging that the move reflected an attempt to impose a political ideology on national sporting symbols.
The controversy erupted after Hockey India unveiled a new saffron primary jersey for the men’s and women’s teams. The federation has said that the redesign was meant to improve player visibility against blue synthetic turfs and that saffron was chosen as one of the colours of the Indian tricolour.
But this has raised questions over the decision and has drawn criticism from opposition leaders and some former players such as Olympic gold medal-winning captain Vasudevan Baskaran and former India captain Viren Rasquinha.
In a post made in Hindi on X, Kharge said the issue was “not merely a sporting decision” but one that was linked to the emotions of millions of Indians and the country’s sporting tradition. He added that Indian teams have long been recognised as the “Men in Blue”, “The Blues” and the “Blue Tigers”, calling the blue jersey a legacy of Indian sport.
भारतीय हॉकी टीम की जर्सी का रंग बदलने का फैसला केवल एक खेल संबंधी निर्णय नहीं है, बल्कि करोड़ों भारतीयों की भावनाओं और हमारी खेल परंपरा से जुड़ा विषय है।
भारतीय खिलाड़ी वर्षों से दुनिया भर में “Men in Blue” और “The Blues” “ The Blue Tigers” के नाम से पहचाने जाते रहे हैं। यह…
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) August 1, 2026
Questioning the rationale behind the move, the Congress president wrote, “Today it is difficult to understand why there was a need to change this historic identity.”
“The question is not about any colour, but about the decision-making process, transparency and respect for public sentiment,” he said. Kharge elaborated that his objection was not with the colour saffron itself. “Saffron, white and green are all colours of our national flag and are also represented with equal respect in the Indian National Congress flag.”
The Congress chief also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (BJP-RSS) ideological ecosystem of attempting to leave its mark on national institutions and symbols. “It is unfortunate that those whose ideological tradition had no contribution to the freedom movement are today in a hurry to leave their ideological imprint on every national symbol and every public institution.”
“History knows that the RSS had fiercely opposed the Tricolour and Sardar Patel had also warned them.”
Kharge also claimed that the jersey issue was part of a larger pattern of changes to public institutions and symbols.
“From road pavements to Parliament staff uniforms, from the Doordarshan logo and now the players’ jerseys — all without broad public consensus,” he wrote. Calling for the decision to be reversed, he said, “National symbols, sports and players should not be made instruments of narrow political experiments.”
He urged the government to “immediately reconsider this decision” and asked why Hockey India’s Executive Board was not consulted before the decision to change the jersey colour was changed. The federation has denied any political motive behind the change. The issue has sparked a wider political debate, with the Congress accusing the government of attempting to reshape national sporting symbols.
(Edited by Pakhi Khare)
Also Read: Hockey India defends saffron jersey decision after backlash over replacing iconic blue
Am sure that if the jersey colour was green, Kharge would not have any issues with it.
Saffron causes allergy to the secular political parties.