As India marks its Independence Day, one hopes that, sometime in the not-too-distant future, India and Pakistan will be able to live together in greater harmony, friendship and mutual respect. After all, we share centuries of intertwined history, geography and cultural traditions and, to a considerable extent, a common ancestry.
There is, perhaps, no better illustration of this shared history than the little-known story behind the adoption of India’s National Emblem — the Lions of Ashoka — and its remarkable connection with an officer who subsequently served in the Pakistan Army.
Who chose the Lions of Ashoka?
The National Emblem of India is adapted from the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath, erected by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka in the third century BCE. The four lions symbolise power, courage and confidence, while the Dharma Chakra represents the continuity and progress of life. Beneath the emblem appears the motto “Satyameva Jayate” — “Truth Alone Triumphs.”
The fascinating modern story of the emblem begins before Independence.
In 1940, a young Indian Army officer, Captain M. Habibullah Khan Khattak, later Lieutenant General Habibullah Khan Khattak of the Pakistan Army, was posted from the 5th Battalion, 10th Baluch Regiment to the reorganised 1st Battalion, Bihar Regiment.
The battalion’s British commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel J. R. H. Tweed, had designed a rather uninspiring badge for the newly formed regiment. Captain Habibullah felt strongly that something more appropriate was required. After initially meeting resistance from his commanding officer, he was eventually told to find a better design.
During a visit to the museum in Calcutta, Habibullah came across representations of the Lions of Ashoka. He was immediately struck by them and brought back picture postcards showing the Lion Capital, proposing that it should become the badge of the Bihar Regiment.
When Colonel Tweed subsequently went on leave and Habibullah officiated as commanding officer, he formally submitted the proposed badge to Army Headquarters. The Adjutant General rejected the proposal, pointing out that a regimental badge should not change simply because the commanding officer had changed.
Undeterred, Habibullah wrote directly to the Commander-in-Chief, Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck, enclosing drawings of both the existing badge and his proposed Ashoka Lions. He argued that the new design had a historical association with Bihar and was far more appropriate for the regiment.
Auchinleck replied:
“Whilst I cannot disagree with my Adjutant General that a battalion crest does not change with the commanding officer, I agree with you that the crest recommended by you is better and I therefore reluctantly agree with you.”
And so the Lions of Ashoka became the badge of the Bihar Regiment.
A few years later, in 1945, after heavy fighting in Burma, the 1st Battalion returned to Shillong for rest and refitting. During a visit, the Governor of Bihar, Sir Thomas Rutherford, noticed the regiment’s distinctive badge and was so impressed that he sought permission to adopt the same emblem for the Government of Bihar, which until then had used the symbol of a fish in a bowl.
Permission was readily given, and in May 1945 the Bihar Government formally acknowledged the 1st Bihar Regiment and Lieutenant Colonel Habibullah Khan Khattak for allowing it to adopt the regiment’s crest.
Then came Independence.
In 1947, when the Government of independent India was searching for an appropriate symbol of the new State, it too chose the Lions of Ashoka.
By then Habibullah Khan Khattak had opted for Pakistan, where he would eventually rise to the rank of Lieutenant General. When he learnt that India had adopted the Ashoka Lions, he was delighted and wrote congratulating the Government of India. He also suggested that acknowledgement might be made to the Bihar Regiment, since it had adopted the emblem earlier.
His suggestion apparently met with a rather curt response. As Habibullah later recalled with characteristic humour:
“I was told to ‘shut up’ — and I did.”
Following Independence, the Ashoka Lions acquired another important military role. In 1949, the Chiefs of Staff recommended that the British Crown appearing on Indian military badges should be replaced by the Lions of Ashoka. The National Emblem was formally approved for use by Service Headquarters on badges, buttons and accoutrements in October 1949.
Thus an ancient Mauryan symbol, rediscovered and championed as a regimental badge by a young officer of the 10th Baluch Regiment, passed through the Bihar Regiment and the Government of Bihar before becoming one of the most recognisable symbols of independent India.
It is a small but fascinating reminder of how deeply intertwined the histories of India and Pakistan remain — even after Partition.
The story is adapted from Appendix 3, “The National Emblem of India: The story of its adoption and sanction for use in regimental badges,” in Ashok Nath’s book, IZZAT: Historical Records and Iconography of Indian Cavalry Regiments (2008), pp. 798–801
