Himanta Sarma replaces 'India' with 'Bharat' in Twitter bio, sparks debate on colonial legacies
New Delhi, July 19: Himanta Biswa Sarma, the Chief Minister of Assam, has made a significant change to his Twitter bio by replacing "India" with "Bharat" in response to the opposition parties' decision to brand their united front as I.N.D.I.A in preparation for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections.
Sarma took a dig at the opposition alliance's name, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A), by emphasising that India was a name imposed by the British during the colonial era. He believes that the struggle should focus on liberating the nation from its colonial legacies.
Our civilisational conflict is pivoted around India and Bharat.The British named our country as India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat .
BJP for BHARAT — Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) July 18, 2023
Previously, Sarma's Twitter bio identified him as the "Chief Minister of Assam, India," but it was promptly changed to "Chief Minister of Assam, Bharat" following the opposition's announcement. On Twitter, Sarma expressed his views, stating, "Our civilizational conflict is pivoted around India and Bharat. The British named our country as India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat."
The Congress party responded to Sarma's comments by suggesting that he direct his remarks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has named several government schemes and programs after India, such as 'Digital India,' 'Make In India,' and 'Skill India.' Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote on Twitter, "Is the Assam CM having a surplus of sour grapes in his mouth? His new mentor, Modi, gave us Skill India, Start-up India, and Digital India - all new names for ongoing programs. He has (PM Modi) asked CMs of different states to work together as 'Team India.'
He even made an appeal to Vote India!" Ramesh added that if Sarma had an issue with the use of India in the alliance's name, he should express it to his boss (referring to PM Modi).
To avoid the ongoing debate between "India" and "Bharat," the opposition parties decided to add the tagline "Jeetega Bharat" (India will win) to their united front. This decision was made after late-night discussions among the alliance leaders. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray suggested using a Hindi tagline for the opposition alliance.
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- With inputs from agencies
