The long-awaited G20 summit to be held in New Delhi on September 9 and 10 is creating controversy before it has even begun. An invitation to the G20 dinner was sent, referring to Droupadi Murmu, the president as ‘President of Bharat’ instead of ‘India’. This dinner invitation sparked a debate in the country, with the opposition claiming that the central government would officially change the country’s name from India to Bharat.
Let’s find out what the Indian constitution says about the name.
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Article 1 of the Constitution
Article 1 of the Constitution states that “India, that is Bharat, shall be a union of States.” The States and their territories shall be as specified in the First Schedule.
The territory of India will consist of –
- territories of states;
- the territories of the Union specified in the First Schedule; and
- such other areas as may be acquired.”
As mentioned above, Article 1 of the Constitution recognizes both ‘India’ and ‘Bharat’ as official names for the country. In simpler terms, the nation can be called India or Bharat, as both names are acceptable. However, the name is used and recognized globally.
This is not the first time something like this has happened. In 2016, the Supreme Court rejected a PIL to change India’s name to Bharat.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education