A controversy has arisen over the use of “President of Bharat” instead of “President of India” on a G20 dinner invitation sent by Rashtrapati Bhawan, the official residence of the President of India. This incident has sparked political discussions, with various leaders sharing their views.
Stalin commented on Twitter, “After non-BJP forces united to remove the fascist BJP regime and named their alliance #INDIA, now the BJP wants to change ‘India’ to ‘Bharat.’ BJP promised to TRANSFORM India, but after 9 years, all we got is a name change! It seems like the BJP is bothered by the term ‘India’ because they recognize the strength of unity within the opposition. In the elections, ‘India’ will remove BJP from power!”
After Non-BJP forces united to dethrone the fascist BJP regime and aptly named their alliance #INDIA, 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…
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) September 5, 2023
Reaction of Congress leader on change of country same to Bharat.
Following the controversy, several Congress leaders, including Jairam Ramesh, KC Venugopal, Manish Tewari, and Shashi Tharoor, questioned the Modi government on social media, alleging that it intended to change the country’s name from “India to Bharat.” They also accused the government of attempting to distort history due to concerns related to the newly formed INDIA alliance.
Remember it was the BJP that came up with ‘India Shining’ to which the Congress' response was Aam Aadmi ko Kya Mila.
Also remember that it was the BJP that came up with Digital India, Start Up India, New India, and so on to which the Congress' response was the Bharat Jodo Yatra,… https://t.co/0Dxp0YbKU7
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) September 5, 2023
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan used the hashtag #PresidentOfBharat
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan shared the picture of the invite on social media using the hashtag ‘#PresidentOfBharat,’ while Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed pride in the shift towards “Republic of Bharat.”
जन गण मन अधिनायक जय हे, भारत भाग्य विधाता
जय हो 🇮🇳#PresidentOfBharat pic.twitter.com/C4RmR0uGGS
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 5, 2023
Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal questioned the sudden use of “Bharat”
Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, questioned the sudden use of “Bharat” instead of “India” in official communications. She pointed out that in English, we commonly refer to our country as India, while in Hindi, it’s often called “Bharat ka Samvidhan.” She emphasized that “India” is a well-known name globally.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also weighed in, questioning the BJP’s apparent discomfort with the opposition alliance INDIA considering renaming itself “Bharat.” He highlighted that the country belongs to its 1.4 billion people and not just one political party. If the INDIA alliance decides to become “Bharat,” he questioned whether they would also change the country’s name.