Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan shared the invite on his X handle
After Mohan Bhagwat proposed last week that people should use the name “Bharat” instead of “India”, a new controversy erupted about the name and its political implications. The name India was being debated after the Opposition alliance named themselves INDIA to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA alliance.
The latest tipping point that sparked controversy is the format of the invite Rashtrapati Bhavan sent for a G20 dinner on September 9, with the title “President of Bharat”. India has been sending such official invites with the title “President of India”. The invite is viral on social media now. After the invite became a trend, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan shared the invite on his X handle, and quoted some lines from Indian national anthem.
जन गण मन अधिनायक जय हे, भारत भाग्य विधाता
जय हो 🇮🇳#PresidentOfBharat pic.twitter.com/C4RmR0uGGS
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 5, 2023
“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,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in an X post.
Mr. Modi can continue to distort history and divide India, that is Bharat, that is a Union of States. 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! https://t.co/L0gsXUEEEK— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) September 5, 2023
Aam Admi Party has also criticised the move by saying that “Our national identity is not the BJP”s personal property”.
“The BJP”s recent move to change the reference from “President of India” to “President of Bharat” on official G20 summit invitations has raised eyebrows and ignited a public debate. How can the BJP strike down “INDIA”? The country doesn”t belong to a political party; it belongs to 135 crore Indians. Our national identity is not the BJP”s personal property that it can modify on whims and fancies,” AAP MP Raghav Chadha said.
The BJP's recent move to change the reference from 'President of India' to 'President of Bharat' on official G20 summit invitations has raised eyebrows and ignited a public debate. How can the BJP strike down 'INDIA'? The country doesn't belong to a political party; it belongs to… pic.twitter.com/riYNdQBkYa
— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) September 5, 2023
Earlier, RSS (the ideological parent of ruling BJP) chief Mohan Bhagwat had asked the people to use Bharat instead of India. “The name of this country for long is Bharat, not India. We need to use the old name. We need to use the name Bharat in all our interactions,” he had said.
