G20 Invitations From 'President Of Bharat' Trigger Row
The invitation has gone viral on social media, with the opposition parties questioning the government’s motive.
Invitations for a dinner at the Group of 20 summit replaced India with Bharat, triggering debate over the government trying to change the name of the country.
The invitations for the Sept. 9 dinner referred to President Droupadi Murmu as “President of Bharat,” according to a post on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) by Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Sharing a picture of his invite, Pradhan used the hashtag '#PresidentOfBharat' and said, 'Jana Gana Mana Adhinayak Jaya He, Bharat Bhagya Vidhata'.
The invitation has gone viral on social media, with the opposition parties questioning the government’s motive.
The Congress alleged that the 'Union of States' is under assault. "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'," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
"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.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday asked a “flustered” BJP whether it would change the name of Bharat if the opposition alliance INDIA rechristens itself Bharat.
'There is no official information about it but I have heard rumours. Why is this happening? Some parties have come together to form the INDIA bloc. If INDIA alliance changes its name to Bharat, will they rename Bharat?' Kejriwal said at a press conference. 'This is treason.' Kejriwal said the BJP was so disturbed by the opposition alliance that when it was first announced it tried to divert people's attention from it with its 'One nation, One election' proposal.
His West Bengal counterpart and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee said, “We call the country Bharat, what is new in this? In English, we say India... There's nothing new to be done. The world knows us as India. What happened suddenly that the name of the country needs to be changed?' she asked, addressing a government function here.
The G20 Summit is being held in the national capital from Sept. 9 to 10 under India's presidency and several heads of state from across the world, including U.S. President Joe Biden, are attending the event.
(With inputs from PTI)
