After President, now Prime Minister of Bharat: Will India’s name be changed?

It’s probably the most asked question in India right now. Is the country changing its name to Bharat? The Narendra Modi-led government has rejected speculative media reports of a possible name change. However, Bharat has quickly replaced the traditional nomenclature in some government communication.After President, now Prime Minister of BharatIt all started with President Droupadi Murmu’s G20 dinner invitations to world leaders. The invites to heads of state for a 9 September dinner in Delhi went from the “President of Bharat” instead of the “President of India” for the first time.This is a significant change as India prepares to host US president Joe Biden, UK prime minister Rishi Sunak and other top leaders from across the world for the G20 leadership summit.However, the shift in nomenclature is not restricted to the G20 invites alone. On the international stage, the government seems to be making its intention clear.Also read: From India to Bharat: A brief history of the many names of the countryNow another document refers to Narendra Modi as the “Prime Minister of Bharat”. A note on the leader’s visit to Indonesia on Wednesday and Thursday for the 20th ASEAN-INDIA Summit and the 18th East Asia Summit refers to him as the “Prime Minister of Bharat”.The note was posted on X, formerly Twitter, by BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra with a tweet, “The Prime Minister Of Bharat”.In August, PM Modi attended the BRICS Summit in South Africa and then visited Greece. The government notification for visits to both countries referred to him as “Prime Minister of Bharat”, reports India Today.[caption id="attachment_13085332" align="alignnone" width="640"] After G20 dinner invites referred to Droupadi Murmu as President of Bharat, now a note on Narendre Modi's visit to Indonesia uses the term Prime Minister of Bharat. PTI[/caption]Also read: India vs Bharat: How attempts to change country's name in the past failedBharat on other G20 ID cards, bookletsThe word “Bharat” seems to be everywhere. The identity cards of Indian officials attending the G20 Summit will now read “Bharat official”.The name has also been used in a G20 booklet handed out to foreign delegates. The document titled “Bharat: The Mother of Democracy” highlights India’s rich democracy and its ethos.Released on Tuesday, the 40-page booklet will be handed over to dignitaries at the summit. It talks about old scriptures and the four Vedas and mentions how epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata incorporated democratic elements.[caption id="attachment_13085352" align="alignnone" width="640"] The entry gate of Bharat Mandapam ahead of the G20 summit, in New Delhi. PTI[/caption]The government says…The increasing use of “Bharat” has only added fuel to the rumours that the government has called a special session of Parliament from 18 September to 22 September to initiate a name change.But Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Arunag Thakur has rejected the rumours as speculation. “I think these are just rumours which are taking place. All I want to say is that anyone who objects to the word Bharat clearly shows the mindset,” he told The Indian Express.“I am a Minister in the Bharat Sarkar. There is nothing new in it. G20-2023 (branding, logo) will have both Bharat and India written. So why this objection to the name Bharat,” he asked, reacting to criticism from the Opposition over the use of the Hindi name for official communication.Defending the Centre, External Affairs Minister S Jaishakar said in an interview with ANI 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 to the news agency.When asked if the government intended to rebrand India as “Bharat”, Jaishankar told ANI, “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.”Article 1 of the Constitution The Constitution of India came into effect in 1951. Article 1 of the Constitution states, “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.” This means the Constitution recognises both “India” and “Bharat” as official names for the country.This was reiterated in 2020 by the then-Chief Justice of India BA Bobde. “Bharat and India are both names given in the Constitution. India is already called ‘Bharat’ in the Constitution,” he said when the Supreme Court refused to entertain a plea asking for a name change from India to Bharat.The Opposition’s criticism After the G20 invite created a buzz, Congress criticised the changes saying the “Union of States” is under assault.Reacting to the note shared by Patra, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh wrote on X, “Look at how confused the Modi government is! The Prime Minister of Bharat at the 20th ASEAN-India summit. All this drama just because the Opposition got together and called itself INDIA.”Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal echoed similar views, questioning what the Centre would do if the Opposition alliance renamed itself “Bharat”.“Just because many opposition parties have formed an alliance and called it INDIA, will the Centre change the name of the country? The country belongs to 140 crore people, not to one party. If the name of the alliance is changed to Bharat, will they change the name of Bharat to BJP,” the AAP chief asked on Tuesday.With inputs from agencies