Invitations have been issued for a dinner hosted by President Droupadi Murmu at Bharat Mandapam on September 9th for world leaders attending the upcoming G20 Summit in New Delhi. These invitations bear the title ‘President of Bharat’ instead of the customary ‘President of India’.
This choice appears to align with the Ministry of External Affairs, which is overseeing the entire G20 event and related activities.
While the altered presidential invitation garnered criticism from senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma declared India as the “Republic of Bharat.”
Ramesh expressed his opinion on a social media platform, stating, “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.'”
Ramesh continued, saying, “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.”
In response to Ramesh’s tweet, Sarma proclaimed India as the “Republic of Bharat” and expressed pride in the civilization’s progress towards Amrit Kaal.
This development comes amidst discussions about a special session of Parliament scheduled for September 18-22, where there are rumors of a proposal to remove the term ‘India’ from the Constitution. Notably, some members of the ruling dispensation have advocated for referring to “India” as “Bharat.”
Just two days earlier, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat had advocated for using the name ‘Bharat’ instead of ‘India’ during an event organized by Sakal Jain Samaj in Guwahati. Bhagwat encouraged people to embrace this change, emphasizing the historical continuity of the name Bharat.