Congress says Rashtrapati Bhawan sent invite for G20 dinner in name of ‘President of Bharat’

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said Rashtrapati Bhawan has sent an invite for a G20 dinner on September 9 in the name of “President of Bharat” instead of the usual “President of India”. In a post on X, he cited the Constitution’s Article 1 that “Bharat, that is India, shall be a Union of States” and added now even this “Union of States” is under assault.

Ramesh said Prime Minister Narendra Modi can continue to distort history and divide India, that is Bharat, that is a Union of States. He added that they 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!”

His reference was to the Opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc, which on Friday announced the launch of a joint campaign of its constituents themed “Judega Bharat, Jiteega India [India will unite and win]”.

India assumed the intergovernmental forum G20’s presidency in December and has since held a series of meetings related to 32 sectors. The events will culminate with the meeting of heads of the governments and states of the world’s 20 largest economies in New Delhi on September 9-10.

Ramesh’s tweet came days after Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat last week suggested the use of Bharat instead of India. “The name of our country has been Bharat for ages ... .Whatever maybe the language, the name remains the same,” Bhagwat said at an event in Guwahati.

Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Harnath Singh Yadav called the usage of India colonial. He told news agency ANI that the kind of inspiration and devotion the word Bharat invokes, India can never do. “India is an abuse that the British used for us. They used the word to refer to anyone who they thought were uncouth, fools and criminals.”