'Bharat', Not India, as Country Name in PM Modi's Placard at G20 Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the G20 summit with an opening speech on Saturday morning. The Prime Minister, however, was seen sitting behind a placard that mentioned country’s name as ‘Bharat’ instead of India.

Opening the grand G20 Summit with his speech, PM Modi said India’s G20 presidency has become a symbol of inclusion, of ‘sabka saath’, both inside and outside the country and announced African Union’s permanent membership to the grouping. “This has become people’s G20 in India. Crores of Indians 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”, PM Modi said, adding that all G20 nations have agreed to his proposal that the African Union be granted permanent membership of the group.

The controversy and rumours around the name of India being changed to ‘Bharat’ emerged when the dinner invitation from President Droupadi Murmu to foreign leaders attending the G20 summit this weekend mentioned her designation as “President of Bharat”.

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The India vs. Bharat debate then snowballed into a massive political controversy when Opposition leaders started reacting to it. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that changing India’s name is the government’s “classic panic reaction” and distraction tactics due to the fear of the opposition bloc “INDIA”.

Soon after the details came out, the use of the word ‘Bharat’ triggered a war of words on social media, with BJP leaders clashing with the Opposition and several celebrities and sports personalities also wading into the row.

While the BJP and its ally are of the view that the term ‘Bharat’ is clearly used in the Indian constitution and thus can interchangeably be used on national and international platforms, the opposition claims that it is being done to nullify the impact of the opposition bloc, which was named I.N.D.I.A.

Amid the Bharat vs India debate, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar last week had also said that the word “Bharat” is mentioned in the constitution. “India, that is Bharat, is there in the Constitution. Please, I would invite everybody to read it,” Jaishankar said in an interview with news agency ANI.

The minister was inquired about the response from opposition parties and whether the government intends to rebrand India as “Bharat” in alignment with the G20 summit.

“Look, when you say Bharat in a sense, a meaning and understanding and a connotation that comes with it and that is reflected in our Constitution as well,” Jaishankar said.