In the backdrop of the high-profile G20 Summit in New Delhi, people in India have been gripped with speculations as to whether the country will change its name to ‘Bharat’ in accordance with its ancestral roots before the Mughal and British colonial domination of the country. The Indian President Droupadi Murmu’s invite to the G-20 leaders for an official banquet issued in the name of ‘Bharat’ and not India has not only created a stir in India but also fuelled speculation overseas if Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to change the name to Bharat in accordance with the early Hindu tradition of it being ‘Bharat’ which was anglicised by the British to India.
The official G20 invite for foreign dignitaries with Indian President Murmu referred to her as the ‘President of Bharat’ has kicked up a political storm and raging debate on the country’s name. The invite has fanned speculation that the Indian government is considering changing the country’s name to ‘Bharat’, a term that has its origins in the Sanskrit language and that is used colloquially to refer to India. The first clause in the Indian constitution under which the Prime Minister owes allegiance to India also says, “India, that is, Bharat …under which he takes the oath of office.”
While Modi has not confirmed replacing ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’, he has also not explained the changes in the G20 invites. But a new Indian government document calling India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi the ‘Prime Minister of Bharat’ has added to swirling rumours that the country could get a name change. It is surprising that the new document designates Modi as the ‘Prime Minister of Bharat’ and not ‘Prime Minister of India’, which has been the format for more than 75 years, which is now being celebrated as the ‘Amrit Kaal’ (The period of elixir).
The social media bio on Twitter/X still says ‘Prime Minister of India’ but some leaders and government officials have begun using the term ‘Bharat’. The ID cards of India’s officials at the G20 summit will also read ‘Bharat — Official’, demonstrating a major international push by the Modi administration at the biggest international stage that will see the presence of Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak, Emanuel Macaron, Fumio Kishida and Anthony Albanese, among several others attending, making this the G20 summit the biggest event in India after the Commonwealth summit at Bengaluru in the 80s.
‘Bharat’, the word that dates back to ancient Indian scriptures, has not been a commonly used term for India’s domestic and international correspondence ever since it gained independence from British rule in 1947. The name change call has gained momentum with members of Modi’s BJP claiming they want to get rid of the colonial ‘English’ name and give a true representation of the Hindu culture and Bharat as it was called in ancient times before the colonial rule of the British. A special session of the Indian Parliament taking place this month could be the venue for Modi to announce its intention to officially rename the country.
