Significant mention: ‘Bharat’ nameplate for the PM’s seat at the G20 amidst renaming rumours

The nameplate kept in front of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G20 Summit read “Bharat” instead of “India” amid controversy over the country’s name change from India to Bharat.

This comes days after a significant uproar erupted over the change from Bharat to India in President Droupadi Murmu’s invitation to foreign leaders attending the G20 Summit this weekend to dinner.

‘Bharat’ was displayed on a sign as Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave his opening remarks at the summit, as seen in videos and images that were extensively shared on social media.

PM Modi addressed the nation as Bharat in his speech-

In his speech, PM Modi avoided using the phrase “India” and instead referred to the country as “Bharat.”

 “Today, as the President of G20, calls upon the world together to transform the global trust deficit into one of trust and reliance. This is the time for all of us to move together. In this time, the mantra of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas’ can be the torchbearer for us. Be it the divide between the north and the south, the distance between east and west, management of food and fuel, terrorism, cyber security, health, energy or water security, we will have to find a solid solution to this for future generations,” remarked PM Modi.

“Bharat’s G20 presidency has become a symbol of inclusion, of ‘Sabka Saath’ both inside and outside the country. This has become people’s G20. Crores of Bharatiya people are connected to this. In more than 60 cities of the country, more than 200 meetings have taken place. With the sense of ‘Sabka Saath’, had proposed that the African Union be granted permanent membership of G20. I believe that all of us agree to this proposal.” added PM Modi.

“Bharat” has also been used in a G20 booklet meant for foreign delegates titled – “Bharat, The Mother Of Democracy”. “Bharat is the official name of the country. It is mentioned in the Constitution as also in the discussions of 1946-48,” the booklet says.

Opposition’s attack-

The Opposition has launched a scathing attack on the centre over the issue. Members of the INDIA bloc have alleged that the Narendra Modi government of “distorting history and dividing India”.

However, the government downplayed the name-change dispute, claiming that the word is already included in the nation’s Constitution. The Constitution’s Article 1 specifies that “India, that is, Bharat, shall be a union of states,” and anyone who objects to Bharat should study it, according to Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

The opposition Congress, on the other hand, said that they did not oppose to the name Bharat and that they only brought up the matter because a BJP politician had suggested that India be dropped and it will be adopted as the nation’s official name. Additionally, PM Modi has requested that his Council of Ministers refrain from making any further comments about the India-Bharat dispute.

United Nations’ perspective on the situation-

A spokesperson for the international organisation told NDTV today that the UN has declared that it will change India’s name to Bharat in its records after New Delhi has completed all relevant procedures. Stephane Dujarric, the principal spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, stated that “when India completes the formalities to change the name, they will inform us, and we will change the name in the UN records.”

Speaking outside of the G20 conference in Delhi, Dujarric said, “It’s not for the UN to comment on the debate.” He emphasised further, saying “As long as the formalities are completed, the UN will change the name too. It’s a bureaucratic matter when it comes to what the UN needs to do.”

If the name is changed at all, India won’t be the first nation. There is a lengthy list of nations whose names have been altered for political, social, or other reasons. The top UN official added that “history has shown that it has happened a number of times for several countries” and used Turkey’s name change to Turkiye last year as an example.

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