On April 6th, the Bhartiya Janta Party celebrated its 42nd Foundation Day with all senior party leaders present at the occasion. The attendance of these party members was marked with a common doting garment; a saffron-coloured cap bearing the party symbol of a lotus and the words "BJP" printed on it. PM Modi was seen wearing this cap during a roadshow in Ahmedabad last month, which will now be sent to all the party MPs.

Even CM Yogi Adityanath and state BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh, who participated in the celebrations at the BJP headquarters in Lukhnow, were seen wearing the cap. The parliamentary party office of the BJP was instructed to deliver this cap to every BJP MP, including those in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, in a kit that consists of nutritional chocolates. Interestingly, the wrappers of these chocolates have Prime Minister Modi’s face printed on them. These special saffron caps were made in a textile mill in Surat and are all set to become the party’s new identity symbol.

Party officials report that the aim of introducing the cap was to ensure greater identifiability for the party, such that even in the event of a sea of people, a BJP worker is recognised through this new garment. Before independence, RSS workers used to dote on a saffron-coloured cap as well. Political analyst Pramod Goswami has said that the saffron colour represents nationalism, emphasising that the party is making use of the colour to represent Hindutva and its identity. It is interesting to note how the party is making use of colour as a synonym for their own political ideology, drawing parallels between the two despite the two holding connotations that are poles apart.

More importantly, the caps and their mandatory use by every party member will definitely have a big role to play in the upcoming Gujarat and Himachal elections. By adding a prominent article to their clothing, the party members will attract more attention, spread more awareness, be more identifiable, and also gain supporters who will wear the same cap as their political leaders during the process of campaigning. The visual and political impact of this will be huge for the party’s interests.

For example, the supporters of the BJP wearing these caps would naturally lead to more and more people availing them for simple reasons such as being part of the social movement or due to herd mentality, even if they are not supporters of the party. However, this will be portrayed visually as a wave of saffron cap wearers, a greater reinforcement of support for the BJP and, more importantly, its ideology. Additionally, the significance of all party members, regardless of their stature and role in the party, doting the cap will re-imply to the public the unity that exists within the party, making them seem like a strong unit.

The cap will soon become a symbol of power, a symbol made use of when an external party member joins the BJP, and a symbol to showcase blind support for the party. It will be interesting to see to what effect the ruling party makes use of this new garment in the coming elections.