Row Erupts Over Indian Hockey Teams’ Traditional Blue Jerseys Being Changed to Saffron

New Delhi: A controversy has erupted over the decision to replace the Indian hockey teams’ traditional blue jerseys with saffron-coloured kits, with criticism mounting on social media and elsewhere.

Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey said on Tuesday that the jersey colour had been changed without his knowledge. In a letter to Federation Director General Commander R K Srivastava, Tirkey questioned who had authorised the decision.

The move, reportedly taken without the knowledge of the federation’s leadership, has triggered widespread criticism. The decision to introduce saffron jerseys for both the men’s and women’s national teams has also reportedly caused dissatisfaction among players.

The two teams are expected to wear the new jerseys at the FIH World Cup scheduled to be held in the Netherlands and Belgium next month.

Former Indian men’s hockey captain Veeran Rasquinha also questioned the decision. Hockey authorities have reportedly maintained that the change was made because the traditional blue jersey tends to blend with the blue synthetic playing surface used in hockey matches.

Critics have alleged that the controversy has once again raised concerns over political influence in Indian sports, arguing that several sporting bodies are controlled by people linked to the ruling party or function in line with political interests.

Attempts had reportedly been made earlier to introduce saffron-coloured jerseys for the Indian cricket team. The initiative was associated with Jay Shah, the current ICC chairman and son of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. However, the proposal was reportedly dropped following strong opposition.

Since the BJP came to power in 2014, the Union government has pursued a wider agenda of saffronisation across various sectors and has recently extended this approach to sports. The decision to change the hockey jersey’s colour without even informing the Hockey India president has been viewed as another indication of this trend. Critics have described the move as part of an RSS-BJP strategy to promote a Hindutva worldview and cultural nationalism through national symbols and colours, warning that such efforts could undermine India’s diversity.