Jakarta, IO – India is rumored to be changing its name to Bharat. This can be seen in the invitation to the dinner for the G20 Summit which will be held on September 8-10 in New Delhi.
In the invitation, Droupadi Murmu was referred to as ‘President of Bharat’ instead of ‘President of India’. A copy of the invitation letter went viral on social media and sparked a polemic, per CNNIndonesia, Thursday (7/9).
Indeed, the country with a population of more than 1 billion people is officially known by two names, India and Bharat. However, India is more familiar because it is often used at home and abroad while Bharat is an ancient Sanskrit word that many historians believe originates from early Hindu texts.
The controversy heated up after the opposition party announced a new alliance last July. The opposition seeks to unseat Prime Minister Narendra Modi and defeat his party in 2024.
Since then, several officials in Modi’s party have demanded that India’s name be changed to Bharat.
Officials from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the party Modi is a member, believe that the name India was introduced during the British occupation. Thus, the name India is seen as “a symbol of slavery.”
Several Indian media have reported that the government may bring up the name change plan at a special session of parliament in September. (un)