Berlin - A German madame has been taken to court for hoisting the national flag that once fluttered above the country's Reichstag parliament building on the roof of her brothel.

Christine Schmittroth, manager of a bordello in the eastern town of Halle, bought the flag in the first online auction of its kind organised by Germany's cash-strapped government.

But the sale of the black, red and gold flag outraged some politicians and prompted an ex-diplomat to take legal action against Scmittroth and parliament's president, Wolfgang Thierse.

"The man is bringing charges against both parties for denigrating the state and its national symbol," said Andreas Scheeveck, a spokesperson for the court, on Tuesday.
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