'Bharat' on G20 invites triggers war of words, Opposition fears India to be renamed

Tribune News Service

Aditi Tandon

New Delhi, September 5

“President of Bharat” Droupadi Murmu’s September 9 dinner invitations to G20 delegates sparked a massive political row on Tuesday amid a buzz that the government could rename India as Bharat in the upcoming special session of Parliament scheduled from September 18 to 22.

BHARAT our objective

After all, the objective of INDIA parties is BHARAT — Bring Harmony, Amity, Reconciliation and Trust — Jairam Ramesh, Congress

The name-change controversy that triggered a sparring match between ruling BJP and opposition INDIA leaders began with Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh’s post on X, where he said that the Rashtrapati Bhavan had sent out an invite for a G20 dinner on September 9 in the name of ‘President of Bharat’ instead of the usual ‘President of India’.

No respect for nation

They hold political yatras in the name of Bharat Jodo, but hate Bharat Mata Ki Jai? Congress has no respect for India. — JP Nadda, BJP

The issue surfaced just days after RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, speaking in Guwahati, urged people to use the name Bharat instead of India and the government said the term Bharat had been used in many G20 documents. “Bharat is the official name of the country. It is mentioned in the Constitution as also in the discussions of 1946-48,” one G20 booklet reads. Another titled ‘Bharat: The Mother of Democracy’ says, “In Bharat, that is India, taking the consent of the people in governance has been part of life since earliest recorded history.

It’s ‘PM of Bharat’

BJP’s Sambit Patra shared official info about PM’s Indonesia visit for ASEAN meet that refers to him as the ‘PM of Bharat’

The opposition accused the BJP of being rattled over the adoption of name INDIA for its alliance, and said the government was out to distort history. “Now, Article 1 in the constitution can read Bharat, that was India, shall be a Union of States. But even this Union of States is under assault,” Jairam said, raising speculation on a possible constitutional amendment to Article 1 that currently reads “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States”.

China ‘backs’ summit

Facing criticism over Chinese President Jinping skipping G20 summit, Beijing has said it supported India in hosting the meet

Though there was no official word on the special session’s agenda, signals were evident with BJP leader and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma fuelling the speculation saying, “Republic of Bharat—happy and proud that our civilisation is moving ahead boldly towards Amrit Kaal.”

Biden visit on track

Jill Biden tested +ve for Covid on Monday while President Joe Biden tested negative; he will visit Delhi for G20 as scheduled

Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Giriraj Singh shared President Murmu’s G20 dinner invite on X, proudly proclaiming the term Bharat. A war of words ensued all day between INDIA and BJP leaders with bitterness soaring in the election year.

The Congress, NCP, TMC, AAP, RJD, Left Front and the DMK questioned the government’s motives while BJP president JP Nadda accused the Congress of objecting to every subject related to national pride.

“Why do political yatras in the name of Bharat Jodo hate the proclamation of “Bharat Mata Ki Jai”? It is clear that the Congress has neither respect for the country, nor for the constitution of the country, nor for the constitutional institutions. They just mean to praise a particular family. The whole country knows well the anti-national and anti-constitutional intentions of the Congress,” said Nadda.

Jairam retorted saying PM Modi can “distort history and divide India, but we will not be deterred. After all, what is the objective of INDIA parties? It is BHARAT—Bring Harmony, Amity, Reconciliation and Trust. Judega BHARAT, Jeetega INDIA.”

#Bharat #BJP #Congress #Droupadi Murmu #G20