CM Sukhu pays tribute to Bhikaji Cama on her birth anniversary
Synopsis
Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu paid tribute to freedom fighter Bhikaji Cama on her birth anniversary, highlighting her historic 1907 act of hoisting the Indian flag at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany.
Key Takeaways
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu posted a tribute to Bhikaji Cama on her birth anniversary on September 24, 2026 .
Bhikaji Cama was born in 1861 and was a prominent Indian independence activist who lived in exile in Europe.
In 1907 , she unfurled a precursor to the Indian national flag at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany .
Sukhu described her act as proclaiming 'the message of India's independence on the world stage.' Cama's Stuttgart act is considered one of the earliest instances of taking the Indian independence cause to an international audience.
A woman in exile, standing before a global audience in Stuttgart, Germany, unfurled a flag that her own country had not yet officially adopted — and told the world India would be free. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu paid homage to that woman, Bhikaji Cama, on her birth anniversary on Thursday, September 24, 2026.
Posting in Hindi on X, CM Sukhu wrote: 'स्वतंत्रता संग्राम सेनानी भीकाजी कामा जी की जयंती पर उन्हें सादर नमन' — 'Respectful salutations to freedom fighter Bhikaji Cama on her birth anniversary.' He noted that 'by hoisting the Indian flag in Germany in 1907, she proclaimed the message of India's independence on the world stage,' adding that 'her courage, love for the nation, and sacrifice will always be remembered.'The flag at Stuttgart — what Cama actually did in 1907
Bhikaji Cama, born in 1861, was among the most daring voices of India's early independence movement. Living in exile in Europe, she carried the struggle far beyond the subcontinent. At the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907, she unfurled a version of the Indian national flag — a precursor to the tricolour — before an audience of international delegates, demanding recognition of India's right to self-rule. The act was electric: a colonised nation's representative planting a symbolic claim to sovereignty on European soil, in front of the world's left-wing internationalists. It remains one of the most audacious acts of political theatre in the pre-independence era.Why this anniversary resonates beyond routine remembrance
Cama's Stuttgart moment was not merely symbolic. It was a deliberate act of international lobbying — an attempt to globalise the Indian independence cause at a time when the British Empire considered dissent a domestic matter to be suppressed quietly. Her willingness to operate in exile, to use international forums as pressure points, and to centre a woman's voice in what was then a largely male-dominated movement gives her legacy a layered relevance that Indian political leaders continue to invoke. India's political class routinely marks the birth anniversaries of freedom fighters with public tributes, keeping the anti-colonial narrative alive in public discourse. CM Sukhu's post follows that tradition — but Cama's story, rooted in a specific, verifiable act of international defiance, gives the tribute its own weight.A flag raised in a foreign city, over a century ago, still flies in national memory — and that, Sukhu's tribute reminds us, was exactly the point.
Point of View
But Bhikaji Cama occupies a particularly resonant place in that pantheon — her 1907 Stuttgart moment was an act of international political strategy, not just symbolism. For Congress leaders like CM Sukhu, invoking Cama connects the party to the founding generation of the freedom movement, a lineage the INC consistently draws on to assert its nationalist credentials. The emphasis on her 'courage, patriotism, and sacrifice' also subtly foregrounds a woman's central role in the anti-colonial struggle — a framing that carries contemporary political utility. In a year of busy electoral calendars, such anniversaries serve as low-cost, high-resonance moments of public identity reinforcement.
NationPress
24 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Bhikaji Cama?
Bhikaji Cama was an Indian independence activist born in 1861 who lived in exile in Europe and became famous for unfurling a version of the Indian national flag at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907 , demanding freedom for India on the world stage.
What did Bhikaji Cama do in 1907 in Germany?
At the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907 , Bhikaji Cama unfurled a precursor to the Indian national flag before an international audience, declaring India's right to independence — one of the earliest acts of global lobbying for the Indian freedom cause.
Why did CM Sukhu post about Bhikaji Cama?
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu posted a tribute on her birth anniversary on September 24, 2026 , honouring her courage, patriotism, and sacrifice as a freedom fighter.
When is Bhikaji Cama's birth anniversary?
Bhikaji Cama's birth anniversary is observed on September 24 . She was born in 1861 .
What is the significance of Bhikaji Cama's flag-hoisting at Stuttgart?
The 1907 Stuttgart flag-hoisting is significant because it was one of the first times India's claim to independence was projected onto an international stage, before a global audience of socialist delegates, by an Indian woman living in exile.
