Use of 'President of Bharat' in G20dinner invite triggers political slugfest

BJP leaders cheer move; reflection of BJP's 'jitterness' to I.N.D.I.A bloc, says Opposition.

PTI, New Delhi, September 5: Invitations for a G20 dinner have been sent out by President Droupadi Murmu describing her position as 'President of Bharat' instead of the customary 'President of India', triggering a massive furore on Tuesday with the Opposition alleging that the Modi government is planning to drop India and stay with just Bharat as the country's name. 

Confirming that Bharat has been used as the name of the country in some of the documents relating to G20, sources said it was a conscious decision. 

"Bharat is the official name of the country. It is mentioned in the Constitution as also in the discussions of 1946-48," a booklet prepared for G20 delegates said. The booklet titled 'Bharat 

The Mother of Democracy' also said: "In Bharat that is India, taking the consent of the people in governance has been part of life since earliest recorded history." 

As Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Giriraj Singh shared on X their respective G20 dinner invitations from Murmu for Saturday at Bharat Mandapam, the venue for the G20 summit of world leaders, the Congress alleged that the government was trying to destroy history. 

Senior BJP leaders and ministers also cheered the move by Rashtrapati Bhavan with Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar asking what is the problem with using 'President of Bharat' as our country is also Bharat. 

The move also further fuelled the speculation that the issue of changing the name of the country could come up during the five-day special session of Parliament beginning September 18. As no specific agenda has been announced yet for the Parliament session, speculations regarding its agenda ranging from simultaneous polls to Women's Reservation Bill are doing the rounds. 

The invitation, which was widely shared on social media, led to a storm of reactions with the Opposition alleging that the move was reflective of the BJP being scared of the INDIA bloc and the ruling party asserting that there was nothing wrong in using Bharat as it is part of the Constitution. 

Several Opposition leaders shared Article 1 of the Constitution which states that "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States" and also the provision that refers to the country's President as "President of India". 

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X, "So the news is indeed true. Rashtrapati Bhawan has sent out an invite for a G20 dinner on Sept 9th in the name of 'President of Bharat' instead of the usual 'President of India'." 

"Now, Article 1 in the Constitution can read: Bharat, that was India, shall be a Union of States. But now even this Union of States is under assault," Ramesh alleged.
West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee said: "We all know India is Bharat, but the world knows us as India." What changed suddenly that we should use only Bharat, Mamata questioned. 

Her Tamil Nadu counterpart M K Stalin also lashed out at the government over the issue, saying that after "non-BJP forces united to dethrone the fascist BJP regime" and aptly named their alliance INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance), now the BJP wants to change 'India' for 'Bharat.' 

"BJP promised to TRANSFORM India, but all we got is a name change after 9 years! Seems like the BJP is rattled by a single term called India because they recognise the strength of unity within the opposition. During the elections, 'India' will chase BJP out of power!" Stalin said. 

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asked whether the BJP would change the name of Bharat if the Opposition alliance INDIA rechristens itself Bharat. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar said no one has the right to change the country's name. The BJP reacted with delight to a G20 dinner invitation that described Droupadi Murmu as "President of Bharat", saying the use of the Hindi name for the country underscores its "civilisation march", and rejected the Opposition's objections to it. 

Congress looks at everything as tinkering. Sometimes they will talk about eradicating 'Sanatan Dharma'. I don't see there is any problem. If we won't use the name of Bharat as Bharat then what else," Chandrasekhar said. 

Sharing a picture of his invite, Pradhan used the hashtag '#PresidentOfBharat' and said, "Jana Gana Mana Adhinayak Jaya He, Bharat Bhagya Vidhata". Besides the first line of the national anthem, the post in Hindi also used the words "Jai Ho". 

In a post on X, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said: "REPUBLIC OF BHARAT - happy and proud that our civilisation is marching ahead boldly towards AMRIT KAAL." Hitting out at Congress' criticism, Sarma said in another post: "Now my apprehension has proven to be rue. 

The Congress party seems to h ave a strong aversion towards Bharat. It appears that the name 'I.N.D.I alliance' was intentionally chosen with the aim of defeating BHARAT." 

The Opposition also claimed that it was reflective of the BJP's "jitteriness" over the INDIA bloc. The row over the issue erupted four days after Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief 

Mohan Bhagwat made a strong pitch for the use of the word Bharat' instead of India. Addressing an event in Guwahati on September 1, Bhagwat said the country's name as Bharat has been continuing since ancient times and it must be taken forward.