With the coming G20 summit in just 4 days, the recent dinner invite for 9th September has triggered debate among Indians, or should we say, Bharatiyas?
What’s wrong with the G20 dinner invitation?
For the very first time, Rashtrapati Bhavan has sent an invitation in the name of “The President of Bharat” instead of “The President of India”, and that is where the problem arises.
“Bharat” has also been used in a G20 booklet handed to foreign delegates, titled “Bharat, The Mother Of Democracy”.
Interestingly, the term “Bharat” is already in our Constitution. Yes, you heard it right! Article 1 of the Constitution says, “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.”
Are we witnessing a historic transformation, a political power play, or something else entirely?
There are many questions arising:
Firstly – Is this change somewhere connected to the (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance)?
Second – what about Article 52, which clearly states, “There shall be a President of India”? So, can someone go against the law and constitution? Or these are only applicable to the people of India or Bharat, who are powerless.
Third – Did this renaming idea come from the RSS chief, Mohan Bhagwat?
Fourth – Will Article 1 of the Constitution be changed to remove ‘India’ from “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States”?
Fifth – Is this change an attempt to shift from the name given by the Britishers and embrace the nation’s own heritage?
These are just some of the many questions that need answers!
But, is renaming India to Bharat that easy?
So, according to Article 368 of the Constitutional Amendment, the govt. needs a majority vote in both Houses of Parliament to make this change
And once the resolution is passed, the govt. needs to amend the Constitution in at least 10 places where it mentions the ‘government of India’ including Article 1 and Article 77 subclause (1) and (3).
Here’s what those articles mean:
Article 1 – India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.
Article 77 (1) – All executive action of the GOI shall be expressed to be taken in the name of the President.
Article 77 (3) – The President shall make rules for the more convenient transaction of the business of the GOI and for the allocation among Ministers of the said business.
Meanwhile, the government has already started using the name ‘Bharat’ with the dinner invitation to the G20 heads without a constitutional amendment. So, will there be any consequence to this?
To get all the answers, we have to wait until September 18 when the Narendra Modi-led government will introduce a resolution to rename ‘India’ to ‘Bharat’ during the 5-day special session of Parliament.
What do you think about the renaming of India to Bharat? Will there be any problem after the renaming? Do you want the name India to be changed?
Written by Shivani Singh
