Raipur, May 8: Members of the royal family of the erstwhile princely state of Sarangarh in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district on Sunday filed a police complaint against an unidentified person for allegedly stealing its 'state flag' installed on top of their palace and replacing it with a saffron one.

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On behalf of the scion of the erstwhile princely state Pushpa Devi Singh, a former MP, a family member - Dr Parivesh Mishra - has lodged the complaint at Sarangarh police station, a police official said.

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As per the complaint, on Saturday evening, an unidentified person was seen in Giri Vilas Palace located in Sarangarh town and this afternoon, the flag of the princely state period of the family was found missing from the flag post on top of the complex, he said.

"A saffron flag was found installed in place of that flag," the complaint said.

Claiming that the 'state flag' was stolen, the complainant has sought action into the matter, the official said, adding that the investigation is underway in this connection.

The erstwhile Sarangarh tribal royal family, had been associated with the Congress party and Pushpa Devi Singh had served as the MP from Scheduled Tribe-reserved Raigarh parliamentary seat in the past.

Police have registered a case under sections 457 (house trespass) and 380 (theft in dwelling house) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in this connection and are investigating the matter.

Meanwhile, Kulisha Mishra, a member of the family and national secretary of the Indian Youth Congress, said, "On Saturday night, I was on the lawn of the palace when I saw an unidentified person going out of the palace. I didn't react at that time as I was in a state of panic. Later, we thought that it could be a case of theft. But this morning, we spotted the flag of the princely state missing from the flag post of the palace and a saffron flag was put in its place."

Suspecting that the act could be a "political" message, she said, "This palace is not an ordinary building as it is the home of one of the oldest Congress tribal families of Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh. It is the residence of the former tribal chief minister of Madhya Pradesh. The members of this family had been MLA, MP and cabinet minister. It is possible that it (the act) could be a political message."

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