Amid controversy over G20 dinner invites purportedly sent on behalf of the ’President of Bharat’, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday asked a ”flustered” BJP whether it would change the name of Bharat if the opposition alliance INDIA rechristens itself ’Bharat’.
The Congress on Tuesday alleged that an invite sent by the Narendra Modi government for a G20 dinner refers to the President as ”President of Bharat” and not India.
”I have no official information on this. I have heard rumours. Why is this happening? It is being said that this is being done because we have formed an alliance named INDIA… The country belongs to 140 crore people and not to one party. If INDIA alliance rechristens itself Bharat, will they change the name of Bharat also,” Kejriwal said, when asked about the controversy at a press conference.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is a constituent of the opposition bloc INDIA.
Kejriwal, who is the national convener of AAP, alleged that BJP was afraid of the alliance and this is why it is resorting to such changes, which he termed as ”treason”.
”What a joke is this! This is our country. We have an ancient culture,” he said.
Kejriwal said the BJP was so disturbed by the opposition alliance that when it was first announced it tried to divert people’s attention from it with its ’One nation, One election’ proposal.
”Their response to the INDIA alliance shows that they are quite flustered. They released the gimmick of ’One Nation One Election’ to divert attention. How can they conduct a ’One Nation One Election’? How will it benefit people? How will it benefit you, and your family? Will it lead to a reduction in price rise, unemployment?” he asked.
The AAP leader said the BJP wanted one election every five years because it had no intention to work for the people and ’One Nation One Election’ was merely a ploy to shirk responsibility.
”There is only one advantage of One Nation One Election. At present, they have to go among people and work every six months. Then, they will be seen once in five years. They will wander around the world for five years.
”I predict that if one nation one election happens, by the next election, the LPG cylinders will be sold at Rs 5,000 and they will offer a Rs 200 subsidy and boast about it. Basically, they do not want to work,” he added.
Another AAP leader, Raghav Chadha, echoed similar views and asserted that ”our national identity” is not ”BJP’s personal property.” ”The BJP’s recent move to change the reference from ’President of India’ to ’President of Bharat’ on official G20 summit invitations has raised eyebrows and ignited a public debate. How can the BJP strike down ’INDIA’? The country doesn’t belong to a political party, it belongs to 135 crore Indians. Our national identity is not the BJP’s personal property that it can modify on whims and fancies, Judega Bharat Jeetega INDIA,” he said in a post on X.
Several BJP leaders in the past have raised demands for changing the name ’India’ to ’Bharat’.
In the recently concluded Monsoon Session, BJP MP Naresh Bansal in the Rajya Sabha had said that the name ’India’ is a symbol of ”colonial slavery” and should be removed from the Constitution.
In June this year, the Supreme Court had refused to entertain a plea filed for changing the name of India to Bharat, while allowing it to be treated as a representation before the Union ministries concerned.
Earlier, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, at a programme in Guwahati had insisted that people use Bharat instead of India.
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