S Jaishankar addressed the UN General Assembly session from the iconic green podium.
Two mentions of 'Bharat' opened and ended Foreign Minister S Jaishankar's United Nations General Assembly speech this evening. "Namaste from Bharat," was how he greeted the assembly and while signing off, he said, "It is this fusion (tradition and technology) that today defines India, that is Bharat".
His speech might reignite the buzz that the Central government is considering to replace the word India with Bharat in the Constitution which had sparked off a huge row earlier this month.
S Jaishankar addressed the UN General Assembly session from the iconic green podium, beginning his over 17-minute speech with folded hands and a "Namaste from Bharat".
"As a civilisational polity that embraces modernity, we bring both tradition and technology equally confidently to the table. It is this fusion that today defines India, that is Bharat," Jaishankar said, concluding his speech.
The controversy around India versus Bharat was triggered after the invitation for the G20 dinner was sent out in the name of the President of 'Bharat' and not India. Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had posted on 'X', formerly Twitter, a picture of the dinner invite to him from the President and wrote a few lines from the national anthem.
Even the nameplate in front of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he opened the G20 Summit read "Bharat".
The G20 booklet meant for foreign delegates was also titled - "Bharat, The Mother Of Democracy". "Bharat is the official name of the country. It is mentioned in the Constitution as also in the discussions of 1946-48," the booklet said.
Opposition parties allege that the government was resorting to "drama" just because they got together and called their bloc as INDIA.
Mr Jaishankar had earlier taken a veiled dig at the Opposition over the issue and said, "India that is Bharat, it is there in the Constitution. Please, I would invite everybody to read it."
"Look when you say Bharat in a sense, a meaning and understanding and a connotation that comes with it and that is reflected in our Constitution as well," he added.